


The Youngest of the 501st

by Yall_its_me_nicole



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: American Sign Language, Angst, Anxiety Attacks, Anxiety Disorder, Arks is mute, Arks uses ASL, Break Up, Brotherly Love, CT-5285 | Tup Is Baby, CT-5285 | Tup Needs a Hug, Comet has ADHD, Comfort, Concussions, Depression, Editor is very evil too, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Epileptic Seizures, Family Feels, Feels, First Kiss, Fluff, Gen, Guilt, Hurt/Comfort, I dislocate Comet's right knee a lot, I'm Evil Sometimes, Injury, Insomnia, Jake Has Epilepsy, M/M, Mando'a, Nightmares, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Overdosing, Parental Plo Koon, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Protective Older Brothers, Protectiveness, Rape/Non-con Elements, Self-Harm, Sensory Overload, Shit gets heavy sometimes, Sleep Deprivation, Sleep Paralysis, So are the other teenagers, Suicidal Thoughts, Suicide Attempt, Team as Family, Tears, Trauma, Tup Needs A Hug, Tup has anxiety, Tup is the baby, Vomiting, Wooley is a sweetheart, landslides, lots of blood, multiple oc - Freeform, mute original character, teenagers being teenagers, very little smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-16
Updated: 2021-02-27
Packaged: 2021-03-01 00:15:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 49
Words: 255,764
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23176048
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yall_its_me_nicole/pseuds/Yall_its_me_nicole
Summary: Basically, the story (sometimes one-shots) is about Tup coming into the 501st and the others being good older brothers most of the time.Edit: I have also expanded to other clones as well. This follows a loose storyline; chapters are stringed together in a manner of speaking.
Relationships: 104th Battalion & Plo Koon, 104th Battalion | Wolfpack Battalion & CT-5385 | Tup, CC-5052 | Bly & CC-2224 | Cody & CC-6454 | Ponds & CT-7567 | Rex & CC-3636 | Wolffe, CC-5052 | Bly/Aayla Secura, CT-21-0408 | Echo & CT-27-5555 | Fives | ARC-5555, CT-27-5555 | Fives | ARC-5555 & CT-5385 | Tup, CT-27-5555 | Fives | ARC-5555/CT-7567 | Rex, CT-5385 | Tup & CT-6116 | Kix, CT-5385 | Tup & Torrent Company, CT-5386 | Tup & Ghost Company, CT-5597 | Jesse & CT-5385 | Tup, CT-5597 | Jesse/CT-6116 | Kix, CT-7567 | Rex & CT-27-5555 | Fives | ARC-5555 & CT-5385 | Tup, CT-7567 | Rex & CT-5385 | Tup, Comet & The Wolfpack, Comet (Star Wars)/CT-5385 | Tup, Wooley & Ghost Company
Comments: 784
Kudos: 431
Collections: TexWash's Must Reads and Rereads





	1. Capter 1- Origins

The 501st had just finished a long battle and every soldier briskly walked back on the ship to get off the hell hole of a planet. Fives walked shoulder to shoulder with his captain, Rex. The whole company gave the pair some space. The two during the battle had, to put it lightly, butted heads. Well actually, they exploded at each other. They reached the hanger where everyone dispersed. Fives turned to Rex, gold eyes guilty.

"Rex I-I'm," Fives stuttered but Rex knew what he was trying to say. 

"I know, I know." Rex gently grabbed Fives into a hug, lightly rocking their bodies.

They stepped away when Kix approached them. With a sad gaze. "Hey, Kix. What's up?" Fives asked cautiously. The two noticed how Kix sighed heavily, obviously exhausted. He replied while running a hand over the lightning bolts in his hair. "I just treated a kid. He lost all his batch mates. They were part of the new transfers." he said calmly but the two couldn't shake the fact that Kix seemed to be agitated.

Rex and Fives took notice. Rex raised an eyebrow in question. "Is there anything else?"

Kix could almost be seen as shaking in fury, "He's almost seventeen. Seventeen. He's a fucking baby Rex!," he whispered yelled.

The clones aging was accelerated until they were ten, which meant that they were physically, mentally, and emotionally twenty years old. But as the war raged on, the Kaminoans were not following that pattern anymore. Cadets on Kamino were being pushed out to the front lines even earlier, much to the dismay of the Jedi. Mostly to Jedi general Shaak Ti, who saw all the clones grow up.

They stood in shock, Fives hand shot out to grab Rex's plated forearm. "He's _way_ too young," Fives growled. Rex nodded, signaling his agreement. Echo, Jesse, and Hardcase gravitated towards the other trio, see the alarming expressions showed.

"Hey, what's wrong," Jesse asked Kix, eye's scanning over his body concerned. Kix waved Jesse off. Kix explained the situation to the other three. Their reactions were similar to Rex and Fives'. Echo covered his mouth with a gloved hand. Hardcase cursed in Mando'a. And Jesse. Jesse was so livid he looked about ready to punch a hole in the hanger wall.

Rex's eyes lit up in curiosity - but at the same time, they appeared to be distant. "Wait, you said he lost his batch mates ?" Kix nodded. Rex thought for a moment before he turned to Echo, "Can you pull up his file, please?" Echo pulled out a datapad and once Kix gave him the kid's number, he pulled up the file.

"His squad was one, if not, _the_ best of their class." Fives softly jabbed Echo's ribs with his elbows, "Not like us, eh?" Echo playfully rolled his eyes then continued, "He's a damn good kid apparently. He has no marks on his record, no complaints, nothing. The kiddo is clean." He looked to Rex, "Any particular reason why you asked?" Rex looked to each and every one of the members of Torrent Company, thinking about the proposal he was about to give. He gave a mental 'fuck it' and opened his mouth to say, "What would you guys say if, I put the kid in the 501st, more specifically Torrent?"

"Hell yeah! Why not, the kid's good, right?" Hardcase put in his vote. Kix automatically said yes, already feeling protective of the kid. Fives and Echo shared a look, Echo had fake fear in his eyes, "Do you really want Fives to terrorize the _vod'ika_?"

Everyone laughed. "How about this, we talk to him first, before making a decision?" 

Kix led the group to the medbay, where he had treated the young clone. "I had to stitch his arm, he was just a little shaken up," the doors slid open. "I told him to stay put-"

He was cut off by Echo hissing, hand drifting up to clutch his left shoulder. His eyes clenched in discomfort while torquing his shoulder. Kix's eyes softened tremendously, "Is it locking up again?"

After the Citadel, Echo had suffered major problems with the burns he received from the blast. He had scarring along his shoulders and back. He also had a bad left shoulder from the way he landed on it when he was thrown from the ship.

Echo nodded, and Kix put a hand on Echo's shoulder blades to led him to one of the open beds.

Fives gestured to the door behind them, "Hey 'Case, let's go to the range. I feel like all of us would overwhelm him," he explained.

Hardcase cheered, "Now you're speaking my language, Mr. ARC Trooper."

Rex gave Fives a look, " Are you sure that's a good idea. You may not be able to pull him away when you guys are done." Fives gave him a slightly cocky grin, "Have a little faith, Rex'ika." 

Kix directed Jesse and Rex to the shiney with a motion of his head, while still working with Echo.

There was a young-looking teenager sitting on the bed with his feet dangling over the edge of it. A curtain of black, shoulder-length hair hung over his eyes, but they could see he had honey-colored eyes. But eyes that should be playful, and full of life were dull and war-ridden, only after his first battle. They didn't blame him, he lost the only brothers he was close to.

Rex and Jesse quietly approached him. "Hey," Rex gingerly greeted the boy.

Said boy's eyes snapped up. "Captain," he muttered, tucking one side of his hair behind his right ear.

The two sat down on the bed next to the young brother's, still facing him. Jesse leaned forward, placing his elbows on his knees, "What's your name?"

Once his brain caught up with his mouth, he wanted to sink in a hole. What if the kid didn't have a name?

"Tup," the quiet reply saved Jesse. He sighed in relief.

Rex looked Tup right in the eye. "So I read your file," Tup's head dropped even lower, "You lost your batch mates in the explosion. How are you holding up?"

Tup's eyes clouded over with tears but didn't let his voice waver when he said, "I'm fine sir." His hair fell into his eyes once more. Before he could move it back, Rex beat him to it, tucking the lock behind his ear.

Rex stood up to sit next to Tup's left side.

"I know you are not as okay as you say you are, Tup. I lost my batch mates young also. I know it hurts. The pain will loosen in time, but I'm going to be honest, it never goes away." Jesse shot Rex a sympathetic look, Rex _never_ talked about his old batch mates. Rex looked to the ceiling to collect himself, "You don't have to hide it from us, kiddo. I know Jesse has also lost brothers too."

Tup was silent for about a minute. 

Rex and Jesse could _see_ the gears turning in his head.

Then his shoulders started to shake. Silently, tears streamed down his cheeks.

He gently placed his head on the captain's shoulder. Rex was internally shocked, he hadn't expected Tup to trust him that fast, but he still wrapped an arm around him.

Jesse's heart slammed into his stomach at the sight, it hurt him _so much_ to see his brother in that much pain.

Rex comforted the _vod'ika_ for a little while longer while Tup collected himself. Rex ran his thumb over the boy's arm.

Both Jesse's and Rex's comms chimed with a message from Skywalker saying he needed their assistance.

"Listen Tup," Rex got his attention, "Keep your head up okay. We will see you soon, but we have to leave right now." Tup nodded, understanding they had orders.

Echo had left a while ago after Kix helped him unlock his shoulder. What Rex and Jesse didn't count on was Hardcase, Fives and Echo waiting for them outside the medbay doors. Rex chuckled to himself, he should have known they would be there.

They started to walk to the barracks.

Rex turned to meet Fives' eyes, "We are most _definitely_ keeping him."

Tup had been transferred to Torrent Company for about a month. The others very quickly came to adore the teenager. Even the other battalions met Tup and immediately loved him and became attached. Waxer and Boil even begged Cody to keep him.

The commander chuckled at the 'twins' antics, "I don't think I'm willing to fight Rex over _Tup'ika_ , Boil. 

"Damn straight," Rex snorted. "Plus, I think Fives would murder me himself if I gave him up."

The other commanders, Ponds, Bly, and Wolffe were happy Tup had brothers to care for him.

The company was in the barracks that night. And Tup decided he was too lazy to move off of Fives' bunk. His eyes were lidded with tiredness.

Fives sighed but still moved Tup's head so it could rest in the ARC's lap.

Fives gently undid his bun, letting it fall and pool in his lap. Fives ran his fingers threw the long black locks, giving soft pulls. Tup completely relaxed against his rebellious brother. He could feel himself losing consciousness. His breathing evened out, and he fell into a light sleep. Fives' normally playfully but still stern and cold eyes as a product of the long war magically softened at that moment. Fives realized this was what the war was for. It was to fight for his baby brothers that had their whole lives ahead of them. So they could live with the choice to fight or not, and not being forced to kill others.

"Rayshe'a, you okay?" Echo's soft voice interrupted his musing. He smiled and leaned down to press a kiss on Tup's head.

"Yeah, I'm good." 


	2. Chapter 2-Nightmare

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What do the members of Torrent do when Tup has a nightmare? Will he except their help, or bottle his emotions up?

Kix had a gut feeling. He knew it was bad, but it was getting late, so what could possibly go wrong _now_. Fives, Echo, and Jesse were also up with him, but the others were tired from training so once their bodies hit the beds, they were out like a light.

It was lights out, they were in complete darkness. The only thing that could be heard was the generator humming through the room. Kix knew he needed to sleep but for the life of him, he couldn't fall asleep. All he could do was fidget with his hands. Jesse was trying to stay awake with Kix but even he was about to fall asleep.

"Love, what is _wrong._ Why are you so on edge?" Jesse finally whispered in his ear. Kix groaned and leaned onto Jesse's chest.

"I have a bad feeling but I can't pinpoint what it is. It's driving me crazy." Jesse softly ran his hand up and down Kix's spine. He didn't really know what to say to that so he just silently comforted his husband. Jesse's eyes continued to drop with exhaustion. He couldn't stay up any longer.

"Okay, I am too tired to stay up any longer. I trust that you will fall asleep eventually you two, or I'll land your asses on the mats tomorrow." he threatened the two younger clones that were across from them.

Fives rolled his eyes and sassed back, "Whatever, Jess. We're the ARCs, we can beat your ass any day."

Echo reached over the edge of his bed. He leaned down and hit Fives across the head. As Fives squawked Echo reprimanded him pointing an accusing finger.

"Fives, don't get cocky. We all know Jesse could beat your ass if he _really_ wanted to." Everyone calmed down once Echo put Fives in his place, and Jesse was able to fall into a deep sleep. But Kix could not calm his nerves, and he didn't know why the other two will still up with him.

Their eyes had adjusted long ago so they were able to see the room completely with minor difficulty. And what they saw was their youngest shifting in his bed, face somewhat screwed up in discomfort, but then relaxed. They paid no attention. Until he started moving once again.

Tup started moving around even more than he had before, but he was just tossing and turning. He didn't pause his movements even though he had been moving for a solid two minutes. Fives and Echo met each other's eyes. Echo raised an eyebrow in suspicion while his twin shrugged his shoulder. Kix watched on with narrowed metallic, gold eyes.

Tup then entered stage two of _whatever_ was happening to him. His tossing and turning turned into him kicking the sheets down to the bottom of the medium-sized bed. Fives and Echo were becoming more concerned by each passing minute.

"Should-should we wake him up?" Echo offered, not fully knowing what he was doing and if it would even help. Fives boosted himself of the bed to go wake up his little brother, but the medic stopped him with his hand, observant gaze never leaving his brother's body.

"Wait, not yet." Echo stared at him, mouth agape and a look the read 'are-you-crazy?'

"Trust me, Echo. It will most likely pass and he will calm down. We don't need to wake him up unless he does it himself. If we wake him up and tell him why he won't go back to sleep, you know this." Kix explained logically, and levelheaded. They didn't argue because they knew he was right. And Kix was kind of scary when he was serious. So, they watched on as Kix's plan crumbled to the ground.

The young clone was now thrashing around, letting out painful whimpers. "You call this calm?!" Fives said hotly.

Kix knew that his plan had failed, "Wake him up, now."

Before Fives could even get within four feet of his proximity, Tup woke up giving a choked scream.

The scream woke up every sleeping member of Torrent.

"The hell?" Jesse slurred, slowly sitting up next to Kix, rubbing his eyes to wake himself up. The other did similar actions, and their expression showed pure confusion. Hardcase just woke up quietly while Rex looked around for Fives, not seeing him in his bunk. Fives just gestured to Tup sitting on his bed, sobbing.

Tup was sobbing harshly, the cries ripping painfully out of his throat. Hellish visions flashing once again in his eyes. He was fully aware he was safe and with his brothers. But that didn't matter to him, not when he still felt the pain of his dream. The clones who had just woken up connected the dots of the evening events.

They moved off their bunks, but not to move towards Tup. They just sat in the middle of the floor, waiting for Tup to come to them. They couldn't pressure Tup to come to them by force, they had tried it before and it didn't end well at all. Five minutes was agony for them, hearing their baby brother just _crying_. 

Tup curled into a ball. Knees up to his chest and his face was buried in his knees. His arms were wrapped protectively around his head. His sobbing didn't die down, if anything they were getting louder, thank god for thick walls. He looked like he wanted to disappear.

Fives couldn't take it anymore. He scooted closer to Tup but still kept his distance. 

"Tup'ika, do you want to come down?" he whispered so only Tup could hear. He hesitated before nodding. Fives nodded even though Tup couldn't see him.

"Do you want me to pick you up, so you don't have to move?" He got another nod as an answer.

Fives slowly got off the ground and crouched in front of the kid _._ He placed a hand on top of Tup's intertwined hands on the back of his neck and pressed his lips on Tup's hair, then warned him, "I'm going to pick you up now okay?"

Fives snaked one arm under Tup's knees and another one around his back. He gently, as humanly possible, hoisted Tup off the bed. He slowly walked back to the huddle of his brothers and carefully sat down with Tup still in his arms. Tup had originally calmed down, but then he broke back down into another round of tears.

Rex clicked his tongue sadly, it hurt them all so much, not being able to help him. But they need _him_ to come to _them._ They watched as Fives shushed him lightly, rocking back and forth. Tup uncurled to wrap his arms around his brother's broad chest and placed his head on Fives' left shoulder where his neck met his shoulder socket.

They were in this unpleasant silence, safe for Tup's cries. They slipped out soothing words, and phrases, desperate to get him to stop crying. It was a miracle when he sobbing was quiet tears and occasional whimpers. And Fives held him the whole time because he wanted to.

Before Tup came along, Fives and Echo were the youngest. Yeah, they had younger brothers within the battalion, not in the alpha squad, Torrent, but it wasn't the same. Now he had a younger brother that he could love and live with. So the others understood his protectiveness.

They were on the floor for roughly an hour. Tup wouldn't talk about it at all, even when they begged for him to tell them what was wrong. They gave up in an attempt so they let him be. He asked to be put back in his own bed, saying he wanted to sleep. Kix, being a medic, knew the signs of someone being depressed, and Tup _radiated_ depression. But he and the others would talk to him the next day. 

The morning came faster than any of them expected. Echo and Fives decided to break the ice of what happened last night.

"Tup," Echo called. Tup glanced at him from the corner of his eye, giving a warning sign to Echo to stop talking while he could. Huh. Odd. Echo accepted the silent challenge.

"What was it last night, that got you so freaked out." Fives didn't even try to tread carefully, he dived straight into the deep end of the death pool. Tup gave him a side glare, as his final warning. There was so much tension in the room someone could blast it to oblivion.

Echo crossed his arms, daring Tup to try anything else. Echo wasn't normally a stickler for respect, but this was his brother. "Well?"

"Nothing," Tup muttered, obviously done with the conversation. 

"You sure about that? Anything you want to get off your chest?" Echo knew he may be digging his grave as he spoke but he didn't care.

"Nope," Tup snapped, venom dripping in his voice, already turning to walk out the door with everyone else in the battalion. Fives glared at him, "Don't get snippy with me, kid."

Tup turned back and threw his hands up in invention, "Watch me!"

A collective gasp came from the other bystanders. Tup was never like that. And they knew he would have hell to pay because Fives and Echo were running training for the day.

"Come on boys! Pick up the pace!" Fives yelled across the training room. They had the men run suicides around the whole floor. They weren't going to stop for a while, even if everyone was throwing up or passed out. It was a cruel way to teach Tup a lesson, but they knew it would be effective. 

"You boys can thank Tup for the extra suicides!" Echo called. The others gave Tup weird looks, he never argued with anyone, let alone Fives and Echo. It was very uncharacteristic of Tup to do such a thing. And they were only slightly pissed at him, they were smart enough to know that something happened and it wasn't their business.

Tup rolled his eyes, making sure the two soldiers didn't see, but that didn't save him from Hardcase seeing him. He got a smack upside the head.

"What did we say earlier about being disrespectful and snippy?" Tup stayed silent. He would have to give the other men a good fricken excuse when they bombard him with questions later. He wasn't about to explain what he saw in that nightmare of his. He didn't want to jinx it, again.

No one knew what was going on in Tup's head but hey? He's a teenager, they were complicated people.

Tup was correct. They finished the day out and were back in the barracks, ready for lights out. He sat down heavily on his bed, thinking about the day he and his brothers had. He thought about how he poorly handled the situation with Fives and Echo. He wasn't normally that defensive when it came to personal questions but he did give them warnings he did _not_ want to talk about it and they didn't listen. 

"Tup?," Echo's voice no longer had the fire it had earlier that morning.

Tup's honey-colored eyes filled with tears. He cursed himself for crying so much. He let his head drop to his hands with a noise of despair.

He felt the bunk compress on his right side. His gentle but worn hand went to his shoulder.

"Is what happened last night screwing with you, _vod'ika_?" the surprisingly _soft_ voice of Rex asked. Tup hesitated but murmured, "Yes."

Rex's hand tightened its hold they released, "Is that why you were snappy this morning," the captain shamelessly asked.

"Yeah"

"Do you _want_ to talk about it?"

"...No"

"Well... do you _need_ to talk about it?"

His silence answered his question. He patiently waited for Tup to speak. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the others busying themselves but he could tell their attention was on Tup.

The youngster raked his through his hair, shaking it out.

"I've had the same dream before. But the first time I had it, my batch mates were still alive," his voice hiccuped on the word 'batchmate'. "I told them what it was about. Then two days later, we get transferred, and they get blown up. I feel like I jinxed their death somehow."

Rex ran his hand threw Tup's hair, "What was it about?"

Tup gazed at him with broken eyes, "Please don't make me say it."

Rex gave him a look of pity, "Please tell me, it won't do you any good to bottle it in"

Tears slowly came down his face. "You guys died. Every. Single. One of you. You all died in different ways but I had to watch the light leave your eyes. It happened to my batch mates and they said not to worry when I told them and now they're dead."

Rex hugged Tup, his heart shattering into millions of pieces. But he was also touched in a way. Tup was scared that his brothers would leave him alone again. He could understand that. "You aren't going to lose us that easily. I ain't that old yet."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What do you guys think? Is there anything you want to see?


	3. Chapter 3-Choices

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tup struggles to keep his emotions away from his older brothers.
> 
> Warning: depression, and mentioned thoughts of suicide. Please, please, please do not read if these topics trigger you.

Tup buried his true feelings deep down inside his heart and pushed the memories out of his mind. Even if he was hurting really bad inside, he would still put on a smile and pretend everything was okay. And everyone believed he was okay.

They had no reason to doubt his actions, to them, he was just a kid trying to survive a never-ending war. He was fine. Until he wasn't.

The Kaminoans had taught them to not care whether or not their batch or squadmates were killed because that was what happened in the war. He was taught to not care about his brothers. He was taught to not be depressed or have anxiety because it would get him killed on the battlefield. 

But he wasn't _raised_ the way he was taught. He was _raised_ to act his age, his real age, which was eighteen. He was _raised_ to feel true emotions, and not to hold it in. He was _raised_ to go to his brothers if he had a problem. He was raised by his brothers. 

So who was he to believe? On one side, he had lived with the life lessons he was taught for _years._ On the other side, he was raised by his loving brothers and he actually _lived_ for once. But it had only been that way for a little while. Who's morals should he believe? It was hard for him to choose.

His head was commanding, "Be a good soldier, and follow fucking orders."

His heart was begging him to listen to his brothers because, "brothers are always right, one way or another."

He was stuck. Until he played it safe. He decided, somewhat begrudgingly, to 'follow orders'

* * *

Tup did _not_ like to talk about his old squad, the pain was still fresh, it still hurt too much. He couldn't bring himself to talk about it. Hell, he didn't like to talk _to_ his batch mates. He wouldn't go to them if he had self-doubt. He was the oldest, he was meant to comfort his younger brothers, not the other way around. At least that was what was going through Tup's mind. It was easy for him to hide things from his departed brothers, they couldn't get a good read on him. He could get almost anything past them. He could blatantly lie about his mental state but they wouldn't call him out on it. Because he was the oldest, and the oldest knew best. 

Now, Torrent Company was full of protective, kindhearted (mostly), shielding, older brothers. He would have to pull some _major_ bullshit to get only detail past them. They could read him like an open book. So, naturally, when they came back from a shipment and he was quiet, they knew something was up.

Rex knew something was wrong when Tup would not answer him verbally when he asked him a question. Kix, being the protective medic he was, kept throwing worried glances at Tup. Jesse gave Kix a pointed look that said 'don't ask.'

Echo and Fives were equally concerned but their ARC training taught them to hide it until absolutely necessary. Hardcase was, well, Hardcase, he couldn't do anything in his power to help him so he stayed quiet.

Tup liked to pride himself being on not being an emotional person at times. He could get snippy, especially when his brothers asked question after question. But this wasn't him being snippy, he was depressed because that day was the six-month mark of his brother's deaths.

Tup stripped his armor off and slid into his bunk, shamefully hiding his face into his sorry excuse for a pillow. He didn't want the others to see him cry, even though they have seen him cry a couple of times.

His mind kept bouncing back to his batch mates and the horrific memory of the explosion. They died so fast and he couldn't stop it. He promised he would protect them at all costs. They still died, and it was like he was just there to watch as they were blown sky-high. He was helpless.

His chest began to tighten. His vision spun as vertigo slammed him in the skull. He was on fire, he was sure.

His hands were shaking like a leaf on a windy ass day. He only just noticed the tears streaming down his face against his will.

A body sat down on the bed. The person's hand stroked his hair, he flinched away, scared of the person he couldn't see.

A soft voice whispered, "Breath, Tup'ika, you have to breathe. I know it's hard but you have to try." Tup was confused about why this person was being so nice. Soldiers weren't supposed to cry. Crying was for the weak, the emotion was for the weak. So why wasn't this person yelling and screaming at him?

He couldn't calm down and the mystery brother continued the mantra for minutes upon minutes.

" _Udessi_ Tup'ika."

While Tup was stuck in his own head. His brothers were panicking severely. They were soon aware of the predicament with Tup chest was heaving and his breaths were come out of his diaphragm in short harsh breaths. Kix had quickly jumped out of Jesse's arms and went to Tup. He tried to touch him, but when he did he flinched away, almost leaped away.

It hurt Kix. He had never purposely hurt a brother, it was against his nature and everything he stood for. They saw how it hurt Kix but right now they were worried about Tup.

The troopers didn't know how long this situation lasted, it could have been minutes, or it could have been hours. Who knows? Rex had crossed the room as well, sitting opposite to Kix. Tup's tear-ridden eyes cleared, but that didn't mean they were cheerful. 

He hoisted himself into a sitting position and took in his surroundings out of the corner of his eyes. Kix was on his right, Rex on his left. Jesse, Echo, Fives, and Hardcase have huddled around, eyes blown in shock.

He let out a shaking exhale, remembering what just happened. Rex brushed the tangles out of his hair, "What got you so worked up?"

Tup slowly dropped his gaze to his trembling hands. His vision glitched to the battle. His bare hands were now gloved and covered in blood.

Riley's body laid two feet from him, blood seeping out of his head.

"Riley.." Tup croaked out, sliding over to his fallen brother. He shook him, but there was no response. No annoyed remark to stop shaking him like Riley would normally do. Nothing.

Trigger was farther was, but his chest piece was not moving. Even if Tup wanted to get to him, he would be shot down. He was scared to look around even more. This couldn't be happening, it wasn't real, he tried to convince himself this. But he couldn't believe his thoughts for a second.

Peyton's helmet was caved in so much, there was no way he was alive. Tup shook his head, "Damn it"

And Finn. When Tup identified his youngest member, he slapped a hand to his mouth to stop the whimpers from slipping out of his mouth.

Finn, the precious baby of the group, was in the worst state of all of them. His helmet was knock off, gold eyes were lifeless, dull, and so many more things. He was limp, blood pooling around him on the sand. The source of the blood was Finn's neck, which was twisted in a horrifying, stomach-dropping way. Tup wanted to throw up right then and there.

He would have been blown up if another trooper hadn't grabbed him. He would have been fine if he was blasted to a million pieces, he would rather be _anywhere_ but there. Even if that meant he was dead. He would be been fine with it, it's not like anyone would miss him. He had no one to care if he let out his last breathe right there. He was alone.

He was pulled back to reality when strong arms were wrapped around him. Rex soft voice broke his memory, "Tup, you are working yourself up again. I need you to breathe", he cooed.

When he didn't listen, Rex's voice then transformed into a firm voice, "Tup, breathe."

Rex was being firm because Tup could not get a grip so, firm was the only way to go. Tup wasn't listening, he was still stuck on the border of reality and memory land.

Rex gripped him by the shoulders to look him in the eye, " _Tup,"_ he almost growled, using his captain's voice. Fives hit him on the shoulder. "What the hell?" 

Rex shot him an annoyed look, "It's my only option right now, Fives!"

It seemed to work because the teenager finally calmed down enough to breathe. He fell back onto Rex, curling into his arms.

No words were spoken, everyone was too shell-shocked to make a single noise. Rex rocked him back and forth lightly while Kix ran a soothing hand through his hair. Tup slowly fell asleep in his big brother's arms.

Pity was the only look they could give him. Only Kix knew what happened but he didn't want to reveal it.

Echo waited for an answer when he didn't get an answer he lost his cool.

"Kix, are you going to explain what that was, or are you going to keep quiet?" Kix glared at the ARC.

"Well, I'm sorry! I'm sorry Echo, that I don't want to tell you that Tup probably has anxiety and/or depression." His voice broke halfway through the sentence. He looked to the ceiling and swallowed roughly, "Are you happy now?"

The proclamation knocked Echo into silence. Rex put Tup in his bed, then turned his attention towards Kix, "How can you tell?"

Rex was aware of multiple clones that had metal disorders, his own squadmates, Wolffe and Cody, had anxiety disorders, there were more. Cody would get panic attacks frequently, especially after battles were a lot of brothers were killed. And Wolffe wouldn't talk until Comet or Plo begged him to speak. 

Kix sighed. "Well, the anxiety attack kinda just proved it. But he gets on edge, and he doesn't know what to do so he goes to the training room to relax if you can call it that. I can tell because he starts to shake his hand back and forth like he has nothing else to do. I've been watching him for a while now, and it just seems to be getting worse."

"What can we do?"

Kix pushed back a piece of hair that fell in front of Tup's shut eyes. "Nothing"

Fives' eyes widened but he kept his mouth shut

"The best thing we can do it tell him the truth, but I'm assuming he knows something is wrong. And just, let him know he can and needs to come to us if he is struggling."

Mutual agreement pasted over the room with no words spoken. They were upset for Tup, he was _way_ too young through what was happening to him. But they weren't going to treat him any different, they weren't going to mirror the Kaminoans and think Tup is a defect or something was wrong with him. Because they were _raised_ to be _better_ than that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I created some clone names for Tup' batch mates. I hope you guys are enjoying this! If you have anything you want me to write, please leave them in the comments.


	4. Chapter 4-Fives

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tensions boil over with Tup and Fives when Tup makes a not-so-smart decision. Will Fives lose it?

On the battlefield, some mistakes are made. Sometimes soldiers will have to make a choice in the matter of milliseconds. And that's what Tup did. He made a decision that was risky and the others weren't exactly happy with him, but the brunt of the anger came from Fives.

There had been a tripwire that was set up in a village the 501st had been searching. A shiney had not seen it right in front of him. Tup just so happened to be standing next to him. The trooper's foot tripped the wire, which caused a click sound to be heard. Tup had heard the click, and yelled, "Tripwire!"

He tackled the other standing trooper that had not taken cover yet.

"Tup!" Fives yelled, concerned.

Tup shakily stood up, offering a hand to the fallen brother. "I'm fine." Even though Fives' helmet was on, Tup could still see and feel the gold eyes glaring at him. He knew he was going to get a lecture from his older brother when they get back to the barracks if they get back. 

Fives and Rex shared a look, Rex held the same frustration in his eyes but in a smaller capacity. Rex sighed but gave a nod in permission for Fives to go over to their younger brother. He knew Fives wasn't going to start anything right there, he didn't want the last conversion they may possibly have, turn sour.

Fives quietly walked over to Tup. He startled Tup when he grabbed him without uttering a word and lead him away from the group, away from prying eyes and ears. He removed his bucket and placed it under his arm, "What the hell were you thinking?"

Tup was shocked and annoyed, count on Fives to be mad when something happens. "Fives, I'm fine nothing happened," Tup said firmly.

Rex called back for them. "We'll discuss this later," he promised. Tup gulped, Fives was _very_ angry at that moment. Echo gave Tup's shoulder a reassuring squeeze and whispered, "Hey, don't be scared, he's not going to hurt you Tup, you know that."

* * *

Fives was the first to admit that he was protective. He had seen too many self-sacrificing idiots, also know as his brothers, to not be protective.

He was not about to lose Tup to his stupidity. So Fives was mad. Very mad. He was silent the whole way home. Not even Rex could get him to talk.

Tup wasn't talking either, he was equally as mad as Fives, he didn't like the fact that Fives took him to the side to scold him. He told himself that he wasn't a small, little cadet, he could make his own decisions with having to worry about getting in trouble with his brothers.

Rex and Kix were just plain annoyed with the situation. They were not going to pick sides because those two would never let them hear the end of it.

Echo was worried. Really worried. He was very well aware of the fact that Fives _and_ Tup were stubborn as hell. But he was mostly concerned with Fives' tendency to get physical when his blood was boiling in a fight. But he trusted Fives to know better than to put his hands on the _vod'ika_. They would all kill him as a group effort if he did. And he reassured Tup that Fives would not lay a hand on him. Oh, how wrong he was.

Eight minutes after entering the barracks, Tup and Fives developed a shouting match that even Ghost company could hear if they were not asleep. The other five clones just kept silent, letting them work out their problems.

"What the hell was that Tup?! It's so unlike you!" Fives kept accusing Tup. Tup rolled his eyes in a bored manner, "It's not a big deal Fives, stop overreacting!" Tup temper was growing by the second.

"Not a big deal? Not a big deal. You could have killed!" Fives stated the fact, incredulously.

"But I wasn't!"

"I don't give a shit! You were reckless!" 

"I don't give a damn!" Tup retorted.

Kix and Jesse were observing with interest but no amusement. Hardcase's eyes just were flicking back and forth, like watching a sports game. Echo was not looking at them, just staring at the ceiling, praying that the ordeal would be over soon. Rex was watching like a hawk, eyes narrowed. He was growing more pissed by the second, but no one could tell what or who is anger was pointed at.

"You know what?" Fives laughed, empty of humor, "It's like you want to end up like your batch mates."

Echo gasped, slapping a hand to cover his own mouth. Rex actually growled low in his throat, at Fives. It was a low blow.

"Shut the fuck up Fives!" Tup yelled defensibly. He wanted to burst into tears, he didn't want to fight with Fives anymore. He wanted to just stop and apologize but his pride wouldn't let him. So he would just follow along with the argument and try not to break.

"And you say I'm reckless? You're a goddamn ARC Fives, an _ARC._ You do stupid shit all the time!" Tup pointed out correctly, but Fives would rather die than admit he was wrong at that current moment in time.

Fives eye's hardened to piercing gold, amber eyes. He was never this mad. "Yeah, I am a goddamn ARC, I'm supposed to do stupid actions. Not. You."

Fives and Tup had slowly begun to migrate to the wall. Tup was unaware that he was two feet away from the wall. They still screamed their heads off none the less. Rex was getting irritated and Echo, Jesse, and Kix were getting worried about what Fives would do.

"I'm not a fucking kid anymore Fives." Tup tossed his hands. When Tup finished that sentence, something inside Fives _snapped._ He was sick and tired of hearing younger clones say the same thing then get themselves shot or blown up. He became the ARC that everyone feared he would be. He grabbed the seventeen-year-old roughly by the shoulders and slammed his back against the wall. Tup immediately lost all the fight inside of him, for he was now terrified of his _ori'vod_.

"Fucking guess again! You _are_ a kid. And a fucking dumb one at that!" He pushed him again to prove his point. "You're a kid. And you are a liability. Which means I don't have to protect you. Rex could easily do that for me. I could let you die for all I care!" No instant regret, no nicknames, no sign of remorse. Fives was a blank slate. It was unnerving.

Everyone jumped from their seats when Fives grabbed him, and Rex crossed over to them. Rex grabbed his boyfriend's arm, dragging him into the hallway, both engaging in a heated conversation in Mando'a.

Tup was frozen in place, processing the words, his older brother's hurtful words. Jesse took a step towards him. 

"Tup?" His eyes were full of fear and shock of what Fives revealed and what he had just done. Fives had never landed a hand on him like that, that's why Rex reacted the way he did. Fives yelled sometimes, but he had never once done that to a younger brother. Tup let his tears fall, and brought a hand up to muffle the sound of his whimpers.

Jesse and Kix shared crestfallen looks. "Come here, Tup'ika," offered Jesse. Tup took two steps before running to the safety of Jesse's arms. Tup crashed into his chest, letting his sobs ring free.

"He hates me, Jess," Tup stated pitifully and brokenly. Kix was appalled at the proclamation, he was going to _murder_ Fives for breaking their brother.

"No Tup. He could never hate you. He's just frustrated because of the stunt you pulled today." Kix explained softly. "He's seen a lot of shit Tup. He just wants to make sure you don't leave us for good, we wouldn't be able to bear the pain Tup'ika." 

Kix put gentle hands-on Tup, not firm, and turned his body in Jesse's arms.

"But, he does have a point. You _are_ our _little_ brother. It's our responsibility to keep you safe, even when you are twenty-seven. But that does not mean what he did was acceptable. He should not have slammed you against the wall like that."

Kix was not about to defend his brother's actions, Fives was in the wrong for doing that. He could understand that he was mad but he should have been aware that he was fighting his brother, not fighting for his life.

He slowly took Tup from his husband's arms. He pressed a soft kiss to the top of his head and whispered, "He doesn't hate you. He loves you." 

* * *

" _You've done it now Fives, you have done it now,"_ Rec scolded in harsh mando'a, beyond angry.

" _Whatever Rex,"_ Fives scoffed. 

" _No, you don't get it_ ," Rex came back with.

"You literally said you wouldn't care if Tup died. How many mental backflips did you have to do to come up with that statement?" He switched to basic, making sure he was very clear.

"No matter how many times you deny it, you know that you shouldn't have said that. And the moment you didn't take it back, he felt completely and utterly rejected. It was wrong and you know it. And I _understand_ that you both were in the heat of the moment, you said some things you want to take back." Rex mediated.

Fives just leveled him a glare, and Rex shot one back at him. He wasn't going to apologize for their mini argument. Not until Fives stewed for a little while. So, he would sit in complete silence, without a phrase passing between them.

They both stood their ground. But Rex had nothing to lose, Fives, he did. He could lose Tup's trust in him, and he could lose his and Rex's relationship because of a stupid mistake. 

Fives held up his act for ten minutes. After that, he leaned against the wall and let his body slide down the face of it.

Rex sighed heavily, pushed himself up to walk over to him. He crouched in front of his still form.

The younger clone's eyes were closed, head on the wall. Rex took hold of his chin to make eye contact.

"But that is not what I'm mad at," referencing the previous engagement. 

"What I'm mad at, is the fact that you _slammed_ the kid, _our_ kid against the wall." Fives looked away, his lover yanked his vision back to him. 

"That's why I grabbed you, because honestly? I thought you would punch him, knock him out, anything like that. He's our kid, Fives, he needs both of us. I can't just stand by while you hurt him, I know you would never forgive yourself if you did something stupid. So I'm not setting you up for failure. Because if you did do something Tup may have never spoken to you again or even acknowledge you " Rex said all in one go.

"I'm mad at you, but I know you regret it."

Fives slowly wrapped his arms around Rex's neck.

"Love you," Fives muttered. Rex smiled, "Love you too. And you're going to talk to Tup, today."

* * *

Tup was wrapped in both Jesse and Kix's arms. Kix had moved them to on of the beds, so Tup could calm down. And he did, after a little while at least. Waxer and Boil popped in, after hearing the commotion. Echo dealt with them while Kix and Jesse were working with Tup. 

They managed to calm him down enough to were he could breathe. Jesse ran a hand through Tup's hair and Kix said soothing words every once in a while.

Jesse leaned towards the direction of Kix as Tup spaced out.

"Do you think he'll apologize?" he whispered for only the medic to hear.

Kix dropped his gaze to the boy in his arms, "If he doesn't, I'll kick his _shebs_." Jesse huffed a laugh.

The barrack doors opened, Fives staying in the doorway. 

"Speak of the devil."

Fives looked to Kix, seemingly asking for permission, he didn't want to step on any toes. Kix nodded, gingerly lifted Tup, but stopped when a let out a soft whimper.

"Shhhh, sh, sh, it's okay, he's not going to do anything. He just wants to talk."

Tup hesitantly nodded, trusting Kix's judgment. Jesse stood up with Kix walking to the door to give Fives and him some space. 

Fives muttered a small, "M'sorry." when they passed him, eyes showing remorse. Kix gave a small smile, "Just, tread carefully please."

Fives waited in the doorway. Tup wouldn't meet his eyes, just staring at the sheets.

Fives mentally prepared a conversation. Then threw it out of the picture before walking to his brother.

Once he got to him he sat down at the foot of the bed and fiddled with his hands.

"Tup," he started softly. Tup's response was to look up while keeping his head bowed, giving off a sad puppy look that pulled at Fives heartstrings.

"I'm sorry. _So_ sorry. I should not have done that. I should never have put my hands on you like that." Fives eyes filled with tears but wouldn't let them fall. 

Tup kept the eye contact for a couple more seconds but then broke it. "You were right. I did put myself in danger, and I shouldn't have done that. But you _did_ scare me, a lot." He admitted quietly, afraid of the outcome.

Fives shook his head, "But that is no excuse for what I did."

Tup crawled into Fives' lap letting his brother hug him tight. Fives changed positions so they were both laying down on the bed. And that is how the others found them forty minutes later. They knew they would be okay. Fives was just protective, and he was always going to be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This hurt me to write the fight. I'm sorry for the late update and the rushed ending, I really wanted to get this chapter out! What do you think? Anything you want to see?


	5. Chapter 5- Ryloth Explosion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tup and Comet get hurt on a deployment.
> 
> Side note: I made up a random mission on Ryloth, I couldn't think of another planet, so of course I randomly pick one they had already been on. I know the 501st never originally stepped foot on the planet but for the sake of my story, they did.

Things go wrong fast on the battlefield. It's not a simulation, where if you fail, or call it quits, you can try again tomorrow. Accidents happen, injuries occur, but just because it is a common thing, does not mean it doesn't terrify everyone.

For example, a mission on Ryloth. The clones of the wolfpack were struggling to deal with hundreds of spider droids and seven tanks. The 104th had gotten reinforcements from the 501st, who were in close proximity to the planet, being in the same system.

The 501st and the 104th got reacquainted with each other. The two battalions were quite close. Rex and Wolffe were batch mates so they liked to see each other a lot. And their generals didn't hate each other's guts so they liked to work together.

"I can't _believe_ we're back on this dust bowl," Jesse complained. Hardcase gave him a firm smack on the shoulder, "Don't complain, Jess'. We get to blow up some bucket-heads!" Sinker could be seen _slowly_ stepping away from the trigger-happy clone like Hardcase was a wild animal (which was accurate at that moment) seeking the protection of Boost. Comet just snorted and looked away, trying to silently deny the fact that he was amused.

The 501st was very familiar with the planet. They had joined the 212th when they freed the hostages, and Waxer along with Boil "adopted" a Twi'lek child, named Numa.

Tup had still been on Kamino at that point and Fives and Echo were new members of the battalion.

And that moment was where the fun began. 

"The clankers are advancing!" a wolfpack member shouted.

"Engage the forces at the front lines, now!" Wolffe barked to everyone. 

Tup and Comet stuck together, "We better get moving, Wolffe won't hesitate to enforce his command," Comet said grimly, but not sincerely. Tup gave a chuckled and followed Comet's lead. 

The front lines were a mess. There were bodies scattered everywhere, blue and grey alike. It was astonishing, and not in a good way. The two battalions were some of the best in the entire GAR with some of the lowest causality rates, to see that many bodies proved that theory wrong. Dust was everywhere, limiting their seeing distance to only about ten feet in front of them. All they could see was the lasers whizzing pass them, or absorbing into their brother's armor.

"Holy-" Tup exclaimed as he barely dodged a bullet. Almost every clone was pinned or taking cover behind conveniently place line of large rocks, the size of boulders. Tup ducked out of the enemy fire.

He had been out of training for almost two years, so battle jitters were no longer in the equation for him. He was completely focused on the task at hand; take down as many droids as he can and try to survive.

"Well, this sucks," Comet pointed out the obvious.

"You don't say?" Tup sassed the boy.

He glanced at Comet, who's eyes were unreadable. It was hard to believe he was the "pup" of the wolfpack. He looked like he wasn't even trying to aim, he was that good. 

He was pulled from his musing. IED's were exploding all around him, brothers were dropping one by one.

A different wolfpack clone, standing next to them, yelled, "Shell!"

Tup looked up when a large object covered the sun's glare. He did what he had done when his batch mates were hit with a similar shell.

"Get down!" he yelled to Comet. The two young men crouched behind the rocks, bodies tense. It was an agonizing two seconds before the shell hit. When it did, it tossed them a couple of feet away. When they landed Comet's knee gave away and produced an unpleasant _pop_ and was twisted at a weird angle. Comet yelped in pain and instinctively gripped his knee, hugging to his chest.

Tup looked like he was going to be sick, Comet looking the same.

Tup tried to stand, "Comet, are you-" he was cut off by another IED.

The world seemed to move in slow motion as Tup flew through the air. The last thing he remembered was his head hitting the ground, Comet screaming his name and something slamming into his body, piercing the skin somehow.

His final thought was two simple words.

'Goddammit'

* * *

Comet desperately attempted to crawl to his fallen brother, but couldn't get far without having fire shoot through his knee.

'Now would be a good time to have _Buir_ to save our asses,' Comet mentally referred to their general, Plo Koon.

He gave up and leaned into the dirt ground beneath him. He breathed heavily to get his emotions under control, so he could stay alive. 

Wolffe appeared in his line of sight, "Comet I'm going to move you okay?" Comet could see that Wolffe was trying to stay calm but he could see the glint of fear in his _ori'vod's_ eyes. He dreaded the thought of moving even an inch but he knew he would be droidbate if he wasn't put in a safe place.

Wolffe gripped him by the chest and dragged. Comet allowed a bloodcurdling scream to escape his mouth, and Wolffe wanted to shoot himself for causing him to be in pain. He finally stopped pulling when they got to a place with better coverage.

"I know, I know, I'm sorry. But Comet, do not look at it." he gently took off the gray helmet to reveal a pain-stricken Comet. He listened to his brother and didn't look down.

The two wolfpack clones saw that Rex had followed them with Tup in his arms, eyes closed.

"Kix I've got two injured, get your _shebs_ down here."

Kix acknowledged the order and swiftly came over and immediately worked on Tup.

He took the teen's pulse and panic flashed over his face before he put his mask back on to not worry anyone.

Kix fumbled with Tup's armor, trying to get it off to see the extent of the damage.

"Don't do this to me Tup," he whispered to Tup's still form. Kix was not aware of the piece of shrapnel embedded in Tup's abdomen.

Kix was one of the best medics. He always had his emotions in check but Rex, Wolffe, and Comet could see the medic's hands shaking.

Kix hands wondered over the trooper's body and found the source of the blood seeping out, when Tup shifted in pain subconsciously, staining the sand where he laid. Kix examined the damage, then cursed in every language he knew.

" _Osik! Haar'chak! **E chu ta**_ ," (the huttese came courtesy of Anakin when he got frustrated on a mission.) "That's way fucking in there"

Kix steadied himself before ripping the metal away, and blood came pouring out. Tup's face contorted in pain. Kix quickly covered the gash with both his hands. The wolfpack medic came over to him. He wanted to ask why he wasn't in the battle, but his attention was on Tup. He didn't see his battalion crowding around.

Rex looked around, seeing the separatists retreat, and the 501st coming around. At that moment he realized how many people his kid impacted. Tup had always been the youngest in the 501st, - Rex couldn't find anyone that met his expectations, Tup had set the bar pretty high. But that didn't stop him from showing that he was one of the best soldiers and he deserved to be there. They may tease him, or poke fun at him, but they didn't want him to suffer, they loved him. He was _their_ _vod'ika._

Kix and Arks, the wolfpack medic, were working very hard to slow the bleeding when Arks noticed something.

" _Osik!_ He's flatlining!"

Arks put even more pressure on the wound, and Kix started chest compressions.

Fives went next to Rex. He touched the captain's hand with his pointer finger as an invention, respecting that he may not want to be touched. Rex accepted the offer, lacing their fingers together. Fives gripped his hand so tight that Jesse could hear the bones grinding while standing next to him.

Fear gripped Fives and Rex's hearts, a mutual feeling between everyone. It killed the pair to see their kid suffering, dying. Rex couldn't be his men's captain, so he let his tears fall, mutely.

Echo was, well, echoing the same phrase under his breath, "Breathe, breathe please breathe." Fives knew his batchmate was terrified but he couldn't leave Rex. Jesse wrapped an arm around Echo, slightly bring him close to his broad chest.

Kix leaned down to listen for any form of breathing, but he didn't get his breathing, he got a sound that sounded like someone gargling water. He had a hunch of what it was. He turned to Arks, "Flip him over Arks." Arks gave him a skeptical look.

"Did I fucking stutter?! Now!"

They both gingerly turned him over. Kix held his head up so it didn't hit the sand. A thick stream of blood came dripping out of his mouth. Tup started breathing again.

"Someone call an evac right now right now or I swear to all that is good and holy." Kix threatened, "I can only keep him stable for so long."

Everyone moved quickly to do whatever helped that wouldn't piss Kix off even more.

* * *

The evac came to take Tup back to the ship but also had Comet tag along seeing as he was in an immense amount of pain. In the medbay, Kix was able to stabilize Tup with the help of Helix, but Tup was still unconscious, which Kix expected.

Helix started to help a shiney with a broken arm. Kix turned to Comet, an apologetic expression.

"You are going to hate me, but I have to pop your knee back," Comet whined in protest, hiding his face in his hands. Kix stroked the length of his arm. 

"Is there anything I can do to make it more bearable, besides knocking you out?"

Comet said an indistinguishable answer.

"Say that again."

"Can you get Wolffe?"

Kix smiled, know that big brothers had a mystical power that can fix almost everything, "Yeah, one second."

He peaked his head out the door

"Wolffe?" he got the commander's attention. Wolffe's yellow and white eyes turned to him. "I have to pop Comet's knee back in, he wants you." Wolffe quickly stood and walked back in with Kix.

Comet looked relieved to see his commander and older brother. Wolffe sat on the edge of the bed, "Hey Com'ika. He'll be quick, I promise." Comet didn't exactly look ecstatic but he trusted Wolffe.

Kix gently, but at the same time, firmly placed his hands on Comet's leg. He looked Comet right in the eye, "It's going to hurt like a bitch but it'll be fast."

He let Comet prepare for the incoming pain for a few seconds before moving his knee a few centimeters. Comet clutched Wolffe's hand right before the medic snapped his knee in. Comet didn't scream but he still made a soft noise that simultaneously explained exactly how he felt and how much pain he was in.

"Son, of a Hutt that hurt," Comet huffed painfully a minute later. The two older men chuckled.

Comet looked to his right and saw Tup. "Will he be okay?" he asked in a small voice. Kix nodded, looking sad as well, "He just needs to wake up." And right as he finished his explanation, Tup groaned in pain, but still kept his eyes closed.

Kix commed the others, the message ordering for them to come in. Kix crossed over to Tup and sat down.

"Open your eyes Tup," he coaxed the boy, rubbing his thumb over his knuckles. Tup's honey eyes fluttered open, he blinked a couple of times before his eyes adjusted to the medbay. He was startled for a brief moment, seeing as the last thing he remembered was being thrown like a rag doll.

The doors opened disclosing Echo, Rex, Fives, Jesse, and Hardcase. Their expressions had multiple emotions crossing them but one of them was grateful that their baby brother was still in the land of the living. When they came over to them, Kix's posture and calm demeanor dropped, like he was carrying one thousand pounds on his shoulders. Kix strained to hide it but Tup caught a glimpse of it, and so did Jesse.

Jesse became worried on the account of the fact that Kix never let his guard down like that unless something was really wrong. Jesse moved to look him the eyes but Kix's gaze was glued to the floor. Jesse soberly sighed and reached for his husband's bicep, when he did he raised his eyebrows in question. 

Kix shifted his weight and looked up with tears threatening to spill out of his metallic gold eyes. Jesse gestured to the door, Kix obeyed and walked with him.

Echo happened to turn back, so Jesse mouthed to him 'Going to the barracks'. Echo nodded and mouthed back 'Is he okay?' Jesse glanced at his lover before shaking his head no. Echo shot a sad look at the pair.

The other four sat around Tup just making conversation, but discreetly making sure his memory was still intact. Helix disclosed that he had a pretty bad concussion, so they wanted to make sure he still had his memory.

While Fives and Echo were squabbling over something stupid, Tup frowned, like he was missing something.

"Tup, everything okay?" The teen didn't answer for a split second before he became panicked, "Where's Comet?"

The others were silent before they softly laughed while Tup glared at them.

"I'm serious!"

Rex sidestepped away from the bed to reveal Comet laying on the bed. He brought a hand where his heart was with a sappy appearance, "Awwwwww Tup'ika _!_ I _knew_ you still had a heart, I thought Fives and Echo had rubbed off on you."

Tup playfully snapped back, "If I could smack you so hard right now I would, Wolf Boy." Tup didn't have to move a muscle to try to smack him because Wolffe did it for him. 

A voice rang out, "Wolffe, play nice with your brothers." General Plo Koon had left for the medbay as soon as he heard that one of his sons was hurt. 

"But _B_ _uir_ it's fun," Wolffe complained, acting like a little kid.

"I don't care. Comet can't defend himself, that hardly seems fair." Plo smiled under his mask.

Fives and Echo stopped arguing to make fun of Wolffe for getting reprimanded.

Wolffe growled at them, then gave a wolfish grin. "Did you know that I like to break bones during sparring?" he asked innocently.

* * *

While the others were messing around in the medbay, Jesse led Kix by the hand to their barracks. Kix didn't even try to hide the tears from streaming down his face once they were away from any other clones, he barely registered that door opening or Jesse sitting him on their bed.

Jesse was kneeling in front of his partner, at a loss of what to do. His eyes were full of sadness but wouldn't know how to comfort him unless he said what was wrong.

Jesse reached a hand up to cup the other man's cheek. "Love what's wrong?" Kix just continued to stare at the ground.

"Hey, talk to me _cyare_ _,_ " he prompted again and still got no answer. Kix felt hollow inside, he opened his mouth to speak but closed it when no words came and cried more.

Jesse closed his eyes.

"Kix, _please_ ," he begged. He used Kix's name as a last resort. At last, Kix looked up at Jesse before looking at his trembling hands.

"There was so much blood Jess'," Kix whispered dejectedly. He tilted his body to place his head on Jesse's shoulder. Jesse wrapped his left arm around Kix's shaking back and cradled his head with the other.

Jesse let Kix cry, it's not like he could stop him because he didn't have anything to say, he felt the same way. It was scary to see their youngest hurt that bad to the point where he almost died.

The door hissed open. All Jesse had to do to see who opened it was look over Kix's shoulder. He saw Echo, Fives and Hardcase chatting loudly. The trio paused when they heard and saw Kix crying. They didn't want to intrude on their brother's privacy.

Jesse waved them in, Kix's pride didn't mind that his brothers saw him break, they've seen everyone cry multiple times. Kix was also preoccupied with calming down.

Jesse did not see Rex so he assumed that he was still with Tup.

Kix had relaxed after twenty minutes. Jesse felt bad but he needed to walk around to clear his head, Kix told him to go and that he would be fine. Kix was laying down in their bed, eyes closed but Fives and Echo could tell by his breathing that he wasn't asleep. Hardcase looked the same, but he tried to fool them into thinking he was asleep, so they wouldn't worry about him.

Echo felt a pit of sadness in his chest. He would always go to Kix when he had some form of a problem. He would of course go to his other brothers at times, but he and Kix had a different relationship. Echo had spent a lot of time in the medbay after the Citadel. Rex and Cody had managed to drag him from the wreckage, while Tarkin grumbled that they should leave him, so he could survive. He had spent most of his time with Kix and they became very close.

Fives tapped him on the forearm, "You okay Eyayah _?"_ Echo nodded.

Echo crossed the room to reach Kix's bunk. He carefully slid in, facing him. The medic's eyes snapped open in surprise, he had not heard Echo come to him. Echo gave him a gentle smile before curling into his chest. Kix opened his arms, eyes falling once again.

They soon flew open with the barrack doors opened, _again._ He barely saw as Fives left the room. Kix relaxed into the bunk, knowing Fives was a big boy and could take care of himself.

* * *

Fives wondered back to the medbay, looking for his missing captain, knowing that was where his boyfriend was. Rex had always had a soft spot for Tup. Fives had multiple reasons why, but the major reason was that Tup mirrored Rex. Rex also lost his batch mates in training, he was put into officer training by Jango. Meeting Cody, Wolffe, Bly, and Ponds had been one of the best things for him. Tup had lost all his batchmates, he was then thrown into one of the best battalions and had caring older brothers. 

Rex put him in Torrent because he knew he would thrive with them. And he was right, there was no other place Tup would rather be. Fives and Rex seized the parent role rapidly while the others took brother roles. Everyone was happy with the 'assigned' roles, and they took them with pride. 

Fives found Rex still sitting next to Tup, who had fallen asleep. Fives smoothly grabbed a chair, swung it around backward and leaned his arms on the back of the chair while simultaneously sitting down shoulder to shoulder with Rex.

"Hey," Fives greeted casually. Rex's eyes were distant but he managed to give him a small smile. Fives plopped his head on Rex's shoulder, gently reminding him, "You are no use to him if you are sleep deprived, ya know?" Rex sighed, letting his body sag due to his tiredness. 

Rex didn't respond but he knew Fives was right, but he wouldn't admit it out loud. But Fives saw that something else was bothering him. Fives dropped his joking demeanor, and firmly but equally softly turned Rex's torso towards him.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing, it's stupid," Rex mumbled. Fives couldn't help but laugh, "Rex'ika _,_ you're going to have to better than that, darling." he teased but wrapped a comforting arm around his lover. Rex remained mute.

"Come on, the reason we work well together is that we _trust_ one other. So trust me."

"I feel like if I leave again, he'll stop breathing the second I step out the door," Rex pointed to the sliding doors. Fives had the same fear but in a lower magnitude.

Rex jumped when chilled fingers touched his hand. The partners looked to the bed where Tup had turned on his side to face them.

"I'm not going anywhere _ori'vod_." Tup soothed his mind, "You can't get rid of me _that_ easily."

Rex chuckled wetly, "I'm supposed to comfort you, _ad'ika_ , not vise versa."

They talked for a long time, and both the ARC and captain, took note that Tup appeared to be tired, but he made it look like he didn't want to sleep. Fives and Rex stole glances at each other, sad because they knew their little brother was scared to sleep.

They both moved towards the bed. Tup bowed his head knowing they uncover the truth, ashamed that he needed his brothers to sleep. Rex put his hand under the smaller clone's chin and raised his head.

"There's nothing wrong with not being able to sleep. It happens to all of us, even to this _osik'ika_ beside you," he jabbed a thumb to Fives. Tup leaned into Rex's sinking into his strong frame while Fives raked his fingers through his black hair. Tup finally fell asleep in the comfort of his brothers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The one-shot with the shortest description, has the most writing. I love logic. The word Kix said in Huttese is fuck. I was wondering if you guys would want to see a domestic AU with the main clones and Jango. So, with all that said, what do you think?


	6. Chapter 6-Nerves and Sickness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tup's anxiety and nerves cause him to become sick.
> 
> This was a request.

Tup awoke to the bantering of his brothers in the 501st. He had woken up multiple times during the night, not being able to sleep for very long, because of his stomach-turning. A dull pain was still sitting in his gut and head.

'Great, today is going to be a _lovely_ day,' he grumbled sarcastically in his head. As he swiftly sat up, his head spun and dots popped up in front of his eyes. He sat back down to steady himself. Hardcase looked at him from his bunk, grinning teasingly, "Struggling there a little bit, Tup?"

Tup playfully rolled his eyes. While sitting, he combed his hair with his fingers, and twisted it into a bun, tying it up, "Very funny."

They waited around for everyone to wake up and be ready to go to the training room. They would have gone sooner if it weren't for Fives wanting to sleep more.

He grumbled when Rex shook him for the third time that morning, "Five more minutes."

"That's what you said the last two times, which was ten minutes ago, Rayshe'a _,"_ Echo pointed out.

"I _will_ dump water on you Fives, get your _shebs_ up," Rex promised, already moving towards the 'fresher to get said water.

"No, no, no I'm good, I prefer that you wouldn't," Fives jumped up eyes blown wide, not wanting to spar soaking wet.

Jesse laughed from his place on the bunk, unlike Fives he was ready to go. "Aw, is the big, bad ARC trooper afraid water?" Jesse asked both jokingly and like he was shocked. Fives' mouth seemed to drop to the floor, how dare Jesse assume something like that?

"I am not! Uh, Tup b-back me up here."

Tup surveyed what he should say, he could side with Fives, or everyone else. Well, the more the merrier.

"No Jesse, he's not afraid." Fives fist dumped the air, and Jesse looked betrayed.

"Ha, he loves me more!" Fives announced the very bold statement.

Tup's lips developed a sly grin, "He's just sensitive."

Conversation stopped, then laughter filled the whole room, spilling into the hallways. Fives pouted and gave Tup a kicked puppy look.

"Oh no, don't try to guilt-trip me."

As they went to go spar, Tup's hand started shaking his hand back and forth, without realizing he was doing it. Echo noticed his hand moving, knowing he only did it if his anxiety was acting up.

"Tup why are you nervous," Echo treaded carefully. Tup fixed him with a confused look.

"What do you mean?"

Echo sighed softly, not wanting the kid to be concerned if he didn't know why he was anxious.

"Look down, _Tup'ika_." Echo told him calmly. Tup tilted his head down to see his right hand jittering. He clenched his slim fingers into a fist. "I-I don't know."

Echo just softly stroked his spine.

* * *

Training went worse than expected. Tup was suffering, feeling more sick and anxious by the passing hours. He got landed on the mats about four times, always just being a little too slow. It was out of character for him, sure you can't win every time but he would never be landed one after another.

"Come on Tup, that's the fifth today," Cody gently reprimanded him, overseeing the matches. Boil had gotten him on the ground in less than two minutes, not horrible but Tup should have lasted longer. Tup's head had been slammed to the ground by the ARF trooper which caused the dull pain that had originally gone away, magically reappear.

The ARF was still pinning him down, Tup had a track record of tricking his brothers into thinking he was done fighting but when they would get up, he would kick their legs out from underneath them, the _osik'ika_. But this time didn't have the energy to fight back, he let his head fall to the ground, a disappointed sigh leaving him.

His hand ghosted up to reach his temple as pain spread through his skull. Boil quickly got up and helped Tup stand. He swayed a little bit, for the second time that day his vision spun, freaking Boil out.

"Whoa, easy, easy. Are you okay?" Boil asked very concerned.

"Yeah, I just got manhandled too fast," Tup played it off with a joke. He was in a lot of pain, he knew he wouldn't be able to keep up his act for much longer. Also, his anxiety levels were sky high for no reason, and it was making him sick.

"Oops, my bad," Boil chuckled, "But you sure you're okay?" Tup just nodded with a smile.

Tup walked to where Fives and Rex were sitting on the wall. He sat down by the right side of Fives with no words passing between them, the presence of each other was enough.

Tup needed something to do, he figured it was his anxiety because Comet, the youngest wolfpack member, was the one with ADHD, not him. He began to fidget with his fingers, trying to focus on the sparring match in front of the trio. 

He hadn't notice Rex had scooted over to him until his hand took his smaller one.

" _Udesii_ Tup'ika _._ What's up?" he whispered to him. 

"I don't know, I don't know," Tup said quietly freaking out.

"Try to explain kid," Fives offered, making a mental hypothesis that it was his anxiety.

"I keep doing the hand, shaking, thing," he said, frustrated as he struggled to describe what hands did, "And I just flat out don't feel good. Everything hurts."

Fives brought Tup closer to his frame like he was trying (in vain) to hide him from the pain. Tup allowed himself to be moved, he wasn't really in any condition to fight back. His anxiety did not go away either, it was getting worse.

The two older men saw the panic attack coming from a mile away. They wanted to see if their kid could get control but he couldn't slow his breathing.

"Barracks?"

"Barracks."

* * *

It was a miracle they got Tup to their rooms before his attack hit full force. He was breathing heavily the whole way, he was almost sprinting to get away from other people. He wouldn't let Fives or Rex touch him, even if it was a brush of the hand. They didn't take it to heart, the last thing they wanted was for him to feel unsafe.

Tup paced the floor. Arms on his head trying to calm down. He wasn't exactly having a panic attack, it was him trying to deny the fact that he was _going_ to have a panic attack That lasted for _twenty_ minutes. It was agonizing for both of the brothers and the kid.

Tup finally changed his body position, but it wasn't any better than before. He gently clawed at his chest, like he was being choked.

Rex and Fives were really scared.

"Tup, what's happening?"

When Rex said his heart broke when Tup looked at him with destroyed golden eyes, his heart _shattered_.

"I can't breathe."

The ARC calculated the situation, 'Just treat it like the final test on Kamino. You didn't have the extension cords, now you can't touch him.' 

"Tup, sit down, try to breathe deeply." Tup obeyed but still panicked.

"I can't.."

'Well, easier said than done,' Fives corrected. Fives became helpless. Rex took control.

"Tup, I want you to say five things you see," Rex thought it would be worth a shot to distract him, at least until the others came back. Kix may be able to do something different.

Tup gave him a small disbelieving laugh. He really wasn't in the mood to amuse Rex's request but he knew better to be aware that he was just trying to help him. "Um, t-the bunks, the f-floor." Rex shot him an encouraging smile, indicating him to speak more.

"The lights, the barrack door." he hesitated, slipping back into his previous mental state. Fives leaned forward, trying to be as close to him as possible but not burst his personal bubble. "Keep going, _ad'ika_. One more thing, come on, you can do it."

"You two."

Rex and Fives smiled, "Four things you feel."

"My hair slipping out. My feet on the floor." he frowned in concentration. "My hands on the bed. And the ventilation blowing air."

Rex moved closer to him, "Three things you hear?" Fives asked

Tup took a shaking breath, still hyperventilating. "You talking, Rex moving, and others talking outside."

"Good," they praised. They skipped two smells because, to be honest they couldn't smell anything inside the barracks.

"Say one thing positive about yourself."

Tup was silent. He couldn't answer his brother, he didn't have an answer. There was a little voice in his head saying, 'Don't answer because anything you say will be a lie'. At that current moment, he couldn't find anything good about himself, he was too far down deep in his anxiety, he didn't know what to say, he was just blank.

Fives walked at a slow pace to Tup's bunk. He granted Tup the respect to tell him to stop if Tup didn't want to be near them. He gingerly put his hand next to the younger boy's, "Well, I know some positive things." 

Tup's tired, honey tinted eyes shot up in surprise. Fives lips curved up into a pitiful smile. 

"You are kind. Lighthearted." Tup's body slowly went to get closer to Fives.

Rex joined in, "You see the best in things, even if we don't. Our battalion, our _family_ is better because of you."

The youngest clone was drawn to Fives' chest, being cradled in the ARC's strong arms. He let his brother hold him, his breathing slowing down, finally calming down. The bed compressed under Rex's newly added weight. He wrapped his arms loosely around Tup's middle and whispered in his ear. "You're enough."

With the combined comfort of Rex and Fives, the kid's panic attack had passed by the time Kix, Jesse, Echo, and Hardcase came back. Kix immediately went to Tup, seeing the three of them leave the training room. "What happened?"

"Panic attack." Kix frowned at Rex's explanation, feeling that there was more going on. He observed that Tup curled closer to Fives' frame, shivering, even though it wasn't cold. He placed the back of his head on his younger brother's forehead, pulling it back when he felt unnatural heat coming from him. His sharp gaze turned to Fives, disapproving.

Fives cowered away from the stare while thinking, 'What did I do?'

"Did it pass over your thick head that he is burning up?" Kix asked in a fake, calm voice. Fives gave a small shake of his head not looking at the medic. "Up you two get, come on." Rex and Fives stood up, walking back to their own bunks. Kix complained under his breath about unobservant ARCs and captains.

Once he got Tup settled, he returned to his bunk with Jesse, telling everyone Tup should be fine for the night. The lights went out and everyone went to sleep, for a while.

* * *

Hardcase was pulled from his sleep annoyed that he was awoken. He wasn't positive what he was annoyed at but he just wanted to sleep. He heard a creaking like someone was sitting and shifting on the bunk. He turned to his left, his vision picking up on a silhouette. The shadow was a person (obviously), and they were hunched over.

Hardcase's eyes widened when he used the process of elimination and saw it was Tup. He walked over to his trembling baby brother.

"Tup what's wrong?" he asked quietly, not trying to wake everyone up. Tup's gaze went to the trigger-happy brother, tears in his eyes. "Don't feel good," he muttered. Hardcase nodded, understanding his speech was going to be short.

"What hurts, kiddo?" he took Tup's hand in his.

"Head, stomach. Everything."

"Do you feel nauseous?" Kix's voice startled both of them. Tup nodded, taking a deep breath. Kix went over to check his temperature. "Tup'ika _,_ you're burning up _vod'ika._ " Kix cooed. Tup leaned into the medic's hand, not able to hold himself up anymore. Kix held his head, as he guided him to lay back down. 

"Do you think you're going to be sick?"

"Don't know. I just don't feel good. I started to feel bad this morning" Tup curled into a ball, cringing in pain. Kix stroked his back, a futile effort to calm him down. He stayed with Tup while he told Hardcase he could go to sleep if he wanted to. Kix was able to determine why Tup felt so sick.

"I think it's just your anxiety Tup. Your panic attack just fueled it up."

"I'm really starting to hate anxiety disorders." Tup pouted and Kix laughed softly. Tup relaxed after ten minutes, still in pain but it was in a lower capacity. 

When Kix got up to leave, Tup softly grabbed his wrist stopping him from leaving. He looked down in guilt, not wanting to take Kix away from Jesse. But Kix sleeps with Jesse every night, so Kix climbed into bed with him. Tup pillowed his head on Kix's chest, right above his heart.

"If I'm right, you should feel better tomorrow," he reassured the younger boy, who was falling asleep as he spoke.

Morning came upon them. Fives actually managed to wake up at a reasonable time, but he was still the last one to wake up-minus Tup. Kix had told Rex that the youngster's anxiety making him sick. Right after he finished his sentence, Fives went over to Tup's bunk to quietly wake him up, Rex took a menacing step towards his partner.

"If you wake him up, I swear, I _will_ beat your ass today." Fives held his hands up in surrender, slowly stepping away.

Kix continued, " I think we should just let him sleep for today. I don't want him to get hurt while running simulations or anything like that."

Rex agreed, telling everyone to leave quietly.

The next time Tup woke up, his nausea was almost completely gone, but his head still hurt a little. He blinked his eyes open, still really tired. He turned sleepily to his side, looking for any of his brothers to see if they were back from training. Echo gave him a smile, "You can sleep Tup, Rex is letting you sleep today." 

Tup shrugged, not about to turn the opportunity to sleep more. Kix checked on him later, demeaning him okay to train tomorrow. It was safe for Tup to say, it sucks when your anxiety makes you feel like shit. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the rushed ending. Thanks to the person who requested this certain one-shot, it was fun to write! Unless anyone has any requests, then that's a wrap! I will be writing more one-shots in modern AU with Jango and the clones. What do you think?


	7. Chapter 7- It's All Fun and Games

Jesse and Hardcase are very blunt clones, and that means sometimes they can come across as mean. They don't mean to do it, it's just who they are. They like to make jokes and tease people (innocently) until it goes too far. Obviously, they would tease the easiest target, their little brother, Tup. Tup can't exactly threaten them because he's the youngest, it's also not in his nature.

Tup has learned to deal with it, but it still hurt him. He doesn't tell them because he doesn't want them to think he was being sensitive. Tup has grown up with the thought process that being sensitive was not a good thing, that it makes people become annoyed with you, and not want anything to do you.

When Jesse teased him, it hurt the worst. Jesse would always help him when he really needed it, like panic attacks, or when he got hurt on a mission. But then once everything went back to normal, he would continue to berate Tup and his actions.

So, of course, everything has consequences. Jesse and Hardcase teased Tup, mercilessly, one day, and Tup snapped, he was done with the teasing.

* * *

"Awwww, does the little baby need some help," Hardcase drawled out during training when Tup was having a _little_ difficulty with one of the drills they were running.

"No 'Case, let the _little one_ figure it out for himself. The others already baby him enough as it is. I mean, we can't hold his hand forever." Jesse laughed, ignoring the glare full of hatred Tup shot at him. That was an example of what Tup had been dealing with. All-day.

He was shocked that no one else heard the 'teasing' coming from them. It's like they turned a blind eye like they didn't care.

At least that's what Tup _thought_ was happening. The real reason they didn't say anything is because they didn't know how much it hurt him, hearing his brother's words. They just thought he would say something if it bothered him.

"Jeez Tup, _relax_. We're just kidding, don't take everything so seriously." Hardcase rolled his eyes, seeing the glare Tup had sent. That only made him madder.

"Hardcase is right, Tup. Chill." Jesse agreed.

Tup shook his head in disbelief. He walked away, disengaging from the situation. He was aware that if he tried to defend himself, it would only make things worse. He heard Jesse and Hardcase laughing in the background, most likely aimed at him.

He walked passed Fives. Fives frowned at Tup's mad demeanor, stopping him by grabbing his arm.

"Hey, hey, slow down. What's wrong _ad'ika_?"

"Don't call me that," Tup snapped. Fives eyebrows shot up, a challenging expression slipping on his face. Tup sighed and mumbled a small sorry. Tup did not plan to tell Fives or anyone for that matter, what was happening with Jesse and Hardcase. He knew Kix would flip out if he found out. And it's not like they would care.

Fives took him out of the room, away from anyone else. He gently put his hands on his kid's shoulders.

"Seriously, what's wrong?"

Tup shrugged one shoulder, looking to his feet, "Nothing." Fives knew he shouldn't but he made the choice to let Tup leave, he didn't want to push the topic.

"Fine. But do know, that the only reason I'm letting you leave this conversation is because I trust you." 

As soon as they went their separate ways, Fives ran into Rex.

'Just who I was looking for.' he told himself. Rex stopped in front of him with a wavering smile, "Is everything okay?"

Fives ran a hand through his hair, "Yeah, well, I think Tup's acting a little strange, nothing too bad, just the little things."

Rex nodded, understanding what Fives was saying. He was interrupted by yawn escaping his mouth.

"Long meeting with the Generals?" Fives developed a sympathetic look. Rex nodded, becoming completely exhausted as he stood. Fives soundlessly took hold of his captain's hand, leading him back to the barracks.

* * *

Tup had commed Comet from the wolf pack, asking if they could talk. Comet automatically said yes, knowing Tup asked to talk if something was really wrong. Sure they would hang out a lot, but when things were serious, they would always ask to talk to one another.

"Tup, what's wrong?" Comet jumped into conversation the moment they were close together.

Tup looked at him with begging honey eyes, "Promise you won't laugh?"

Comet gave the younger boy (only by five months), a one-armed hug, and didn't let go.

"Promise."

"So," Tup collected his thought, Comet let him have as much time as he needed. "Do your brothers, you know, tease you, or poke fun at you?" Comet inclined his head, all too familiar with the Pack's teasing.

"Well, Jesse and Hardcase, they are teasing me. But I feel like it's more than that. The way they say things, it's like they are disappointed. It's like they _hate_ me." Tup said brokenly, it was much harder to talk about than he had anticipated. Comet had a pitiful look on his face, bring the other boy closer, completing the hug. Comet rocked lightly, trying to bring comfort to Tup that their older brothers couldn't.

"I feel like an idiot for letting it get to me," Tup whispered into Comet's frame. Comet pulled back looking at Tup with a firm look on his face. "You are not an idiot for having human emotions, _Tup'ika_. I know, we've tried to get used to the teasing our brothers send us but, sometimes it becomes too much. There's nothing wrong with that. You can only take so much."

Tup nodded, leaning more onto Comet, soaking in the comfort his brothers wouldn't give. Comet hugged him tightly knowing he was upset. It was a struggle to be the youngest, they have to deal with the overbearing protectiveness of their brothers, and with the teasing that comes with it.

Comet and Tup stayed with each other for a couple more minutes. Plo commed Comet, needing him for the briefing and Tup had training. They begrudgingly left each other, after Tup made Comet promise not to get shot down.

"If I got shot and killed, Wolffe would bring me back from the dead to kill me himself for being reckless enough to get shot." Comet scoffed lightly.

* * *

Tup and a few others from the 501st went to the training rooms where they were going to be sparring. Tup just wanted to take his pent up anger out on something. He felt bad for the person he was sparring because he wasn't exactly about to hold back.

"Hey, _vod'ika_ ," Boil greeted from his spot with Waxer. He gave them a wave.

'So I guess Ghost Company is here also.'

Tup was paired with one of the 212th clones. And like he said, he wasn't going to go easy. 

They stood facing each other, both squaring up. He analyzed the boy in front of him. He wasn't bulky, or stocky. But his lean body could easily match Tup in a spar. 

Tup made the first move. He did a roundhouse kick, knocking the other clone off balance. They went back and forth, neither of them gaining any ground. Tup didn't want to destroy him, but if he wanted to win, he might have to get dirty.

He managed to pin the 212th boy down. The other tapped out, not wanting to get a broken arm out of this match. As Tup stood up, he reached a hand down, offering it to the fallen clone. He grabbed to 501st clone's hand giving a smile as thanks.

He walked to his inner circle brothers, who had just watched. 

"That could have been better, or done faster," Jesse said in a bored voice, criticizing Tup. 

Tup lost it. He was done with Jesse's bullshit. He finally pushed Tup's 'do not press, rage will be imminent' button.

"You know what Jesse?" Tup shook his head in disbelief and stared Jesse in the eye.

"Fuck. You." and turned on his heel. Everyone, even the 212th were silent. They guessed Jesse really pissed him off somehow. Jesse's eyes widened in shock then hardened into anger. He followed Tup's path.

"Really Tup? Really." He stretched his arm out to catch Tup before he left the room. Tup, somewhat accidentally, reacted using his instincts. He did a backward roundhouse kick, _nailing_ his older brother in the ribs. Jesse recoiled but quickly recovered. He twisted the younger brother's arm behind his back pinning him to his chest.

Tup kicked a leg behind him, knocking Jesse to the floor. Rex and Fives rushed forward, separating the two livid brothers. Fives took Tup out to the hallway as he struggled in his arms. Rex helped Jesse up, cradling his hand to his chest. Rex gave Cody a pleading look.

Cody nodded to his batchmate, understanding he wanted the others to stop watching.

"Back as you were. Don't be nosy." 

Rex reached for his younger brother's hand, seeing Jesse flinched when he pressed on a certain part. Kix didn't move from his position of leaning on the wall. He was very mad at his husband. He had heard Hardcase and Jesse teasing Tup for the last couple of days. But he wasn't aware of how much it annoyed Tup.

He knew Jesse got what he deserved, Jesse would have been better off playing with fire, than playing with the teenager. Kix had an unamused look.

Jesse's anger was now aimed at his partner, "Now you're against me?"

Kix steered Jesse in the direction of the medbay, not uttering a word or phrase. They were both mad at each other for different reasons, but Kix wasn't about to abandon his wedding vows. He swore he would love and protect Jesse, even if they were fighting.

Kix pushed Jesse on a free bed, before pulling a chair up. He held out his palm out, waiting for Jesse to give him his injured hand. He put on a challenging look, daring Jesse to disobey him. Jesse roughly put his wrist in Kix's awaiting hand. He winced at the force he put on it.

All Kix said was, "That's what you get for trying to have an attitude with me."

Kix manipulated his hand to move in different positions, watching for any reaction. Once he decided he was done, he stood up looking for some tape. He grabbed it from Helix and sat back down. He gently took his partner's hand back, slowly wrapping the tape around his hand, securing it.

Once he was done, he sat back in his chair. Jesse wouldn't meet his eye, not wanting to see the disappointment. As he thought about it, he became aware of the fact that he pushed Tup too much. Even Hardcase wouldn't go that far.

"You know what you did was going too far, right?" Kix whispered. Jesse nodded.

"And you know Rex, Fives, and I _will_ kick your _shebs_ if you do it again?"

Jesse looked up giving the smallest nod. He dropped his head in his good hand, letting a quiet groan leaving him.

"I just fucked up, didn't I?" Kix moved to the bed, "Maybe, but we all know it's hard for Tup to stay _really_ mad at someone for long."

* * *

Fives dragged Tup from Jesse, knowing if he didn't Tup could cause bad damage to Jesse. Once they were far away from the training area, Tup broke free of Fives slackened grip. Tup angrily paced for minutes, before the anger ebbed away a little bit. Tup placed his body on the wall. He sunk down to the floor.

"Whoa." Fives quickly followed him to the floor, being careful to not touch him. He was in a very rare, emotional state if Fives made a move to touch him, Tup could freak out. Tup took ragged breaths, trying to get a hold of himself. Soon, his breathing was normal. But tears were clouding in his eyes.

"What happened back there?" Fives asked calmly and quietly, genuinely wanting to know. Fives' heart broke when he saw Tup break down in silent sobs. 

Fives barely heard Tup when he whispered, "Why am I not enough?"

Fives was shocked, to say the least. He didn't expect Jesse of all people to make Tup feel like that. He placed a hand on Tup's heaving shoulders.

"Why do you say that?" Fives asked, concerned. The younger of the two didn't answer, not wanting to go into detail. "Please Tup, don't kick me out. I want to help you."

"No matter what I do, he always has something to say about it." Fives hated to say it, but Tup did have a point. Jesse always seemed to critique Tup, even if it wasn't necessary. 

Fives slowly encircled his baby brother. He took it as a success when Tup didn't pull away. Tup cried into Fives' chest, letting all his anger disappear. Tup didn't know what else to do except cling onto his ARC brother. He knew he was acting a little bit childish, but in his defense he had only been alive for eight years, give or take.

Rex managed to find them, confused because last he saw Tup, he cussed Jesse out and broke his hand. Now Tup was being hugged by Rex's boyfriend. He sat down next to Fives leaning towards him.

" _What's going on with him."_ Rex asked in Mando'a, so Tup wouldn't be concerned with their conversation. What Rex was not expecting was Fives to look up at him with tears in his own rebellious eyes.

 _"_ Rayshe'a _, what's wrong, love?"_

Fives' gaze went back down to the boy in his arms. " _He thinks he not enough. Fuck Rex, our kid thinks he's not good enough for us."_ Fives hugged Tup even tighter. Rex couldn't say anything, the only time he had seen Fives this upset was when he pushed Tup against the wall and when they almost lost Echo at the Citadel. 

_"Where did we go wrong to let him think he's not good enough?"_ Fives asked brokenly. Rex hugged Fives from behind, letting his head drop to Fives' shoulder. 

"From what I heard from Kix, Jesse feels like _osik."_ Rex switched to basic, aiming the sentence to Tup. Tup curled even deeper into Fives, not wanting to face Rex. He shouldn't have kicked Jesse like that. He was surprised that Rex wasn't chewing him out. 

"It's your choice to talk to him, I'm not going to force you to do anything."

"Why?" 

Rex blinked at the fast reply. Until he understood what he meant. 

"I don't care if you knocked him out. I, am not, going to make you talk to him. Understood?" Tup hesitantly flicked his gaze up to Rex. He nodded.

* * *

When Fives, Rex, and Tup arrived at the barracks, Echo was the only one there. Tup left the safety of Fives' arms and all but collapsed onto his bunk. He told Fives he didn't really give a damn if Jesse wanted to talk, Tup wasn't about to stop him. Fives relayed the message to Kix and he hoped Kix told Jesse.

And low and behold, ten minutes later Kix and Jesse walked in. Jesse's head was low. Kix wasn't as mad as he was before. Jesse stood still contemplating what to do. Kix gave Rex and Fives a look that read are-you-kidding-me.

Rex stifled his laugh with his fist, trying to keep the situation serious. Kix pushed Jesse towards the direction giving a shooing motion with his hand.

Jesse cautiously approached the teen. Tup's back was towards him, with his feet dangling. Jesse embraced him lightly, placing his legs on either side of Tup. He put his chin on top of Tup's hair.

"I am, _so_ sorry. I really did not know."

Tup tried to be mad at him. He did make him not feel wanted. But he knew better than anyone that life is too short to hold grudges.

Tup slowly shifted and turned in Jess's arms, returning the hug. He wrapped his arms around his brother's torso. They could deal with apologies later, right now all Tup cared about was being enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kind of a half-assed conclusion but whatever. Thank you for this lovely request, I have another one that will be out in a couple of days. The first chapter of the AU is in progress, look forward to that as well. Also what are your thoughts if Comet and Tup become a 'thing'?  
> So, what do you think? Requests?


	8. Chapter 8- High Fever/hallucinations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tup becomes very sick with a high fever, and starts seeing things that aren't real.

Tup awoke with a feeling he was quite familiar with. His head felt like it had one thousand pounds on it. He was also sweating but freezing at the same time. He let a groan leave him, really not wanting to get up.

He then remembered that it was their day off. He could lay in bed all day if he really wanted to, but his brothers would become worried. He wasn't about to ruin their rare day off. And they were all stressed already, and dealing with a sick teenager was not fun.

After giving himself a motivational speech about how he can beat the day, he slowly and carefully stood up. He felt very shaky and unbalanced. He reached a trembling head to his head, feeling the heat coming off of it.

"Fuck," he whispered to himself. He did not want to deal with a fever by himself, but he didn't want to be a burden to everyone else. He would last as long as possible, until he reached his breaking point.

Something caught his eye. He could see the object out of the corner of his eye. The longer he focused on it, the object became more clear, more lifelike. Like a person. He turned to actually look at the silhouette. His heart jumped into his throat.

There standing in front of him was a figure. Blood seeping out of a head injury to his temple, dripping onto the floor. The lifeless eyes stared into his soul like he was trying to rip Tup apart from the inside. It was Riley.

"Tup you're finally awake. It took you forever man." The voice of Hardcase broke Tup's stare. Hardcase's eyes glanced over him, taking in his appearance. "Are you alright?"

Tup shook his head, trying to center back to reality. Riley was dead, end of story. When he looked back to the same spot, the ghost of his dead brother was gone. 

"Yeah, I just s-. You know what, nevermind." Hardcase squinted, not buying the act but left it alone.

"Whatever you say kiddo."

* * *

Tup swore he was losing his mind. Throughout the morning, he was starting to see things that were either not thereafter two seconds, or people he knew that were long gone. Riley, Trigger, and Peyton also made a couple of reappearances during the time. He was also feeling his fever rising little by little, but he was positive that he would be fine, that it would pass by the morning.

"Tup are you sure you're okay, you don't look so good," Jesse asked for the umpteenth time. Tup thanked whatever gods were out there that Kix was in the medbay for the day. Kix would have seen right through Tup's lies and would beat his _shebs_ for not asking for help sooner. 

"Yeah I'm fine Jess'," he said trying to mask his fear. Seeing his dead brothers was really freaking him out. 

Tup shivered, the cold air biting into his skin. He wanted to curl into a ball to bring some sort of warmth to his body, but A-that would look weird and B-his brothers would flip their tops. 

Fives gave him an odd look, "How are you cold?" Tup shrugged while his body was vibrating. He didn't really know why he was cold because in two minutes he would feel like he's on fire.

Torrent went down to the mess hall. Tup sat in the middle with his brothers flanking him.

Tup just played with his food, pushing it around with his fork. He didn't think he could stomach his lunch unless he wanted to chuck it up in the 'fresher. Now that would be bad.

Echo placed his fork down heavily, "Are you actually going to eat the damn food, or just play with it?" To get Echo off his back, he stabbed his food and put it in his mouth.

He became very dizzy, so dizzy he swore his whole body was rocking back and forth. Someone steadied with a hand. He guessed it was Rex because he was on the side that the hand came from.

His thoughts were clouded with the raging fever. He was not lucid at all. The only thing he knew was he was very sick.

He blinked trying to look around to get his bearings. And then his vision had a malfunction. 

Not even two feet, Tup was facing another a brother, a younger one.

Their body was covered in dark, crimson blood. The clones neck was twisted, obviously broken, but if it bothered him, he didn't give it away. His skin that should have been a bronze tone, was washed out, he looked deathly pale. Their gold eyes were bloodshot. But the unnerving part was the ill-temper within them, aiming at Tup. Tup froze completely, stricken with fear. He recognized the young clone.

 _...Finn_.

The precious, irreplaceable, baby brother of Tup. Blood began to pour out of his mouth, dripping even more blood onto the table. 

"This is your fault!" he screamed, making Tup's blood run cold.

Finn was right, it was his fault. If only he had been faster.

Tup did the first that came to his mind.

 _Run_.

* * *

Echo and Rex, who were sandwiching the boy, were trying to figure out what was wrong with Tup. The young trooper had begun to sway. He had clutched a hand to his head while he was rocking like he was in the middle of the waters on Kamino. Rex had gripped him, trying to make him stop rocking, it was making his worried.

Then all of a sudden, Tup spaced out, staring straight in front of him. Fear flashed across his face.

"Tup, what's wrong?" Jesse asked. He didn't respond. Then he stood up and bolted out of the mess hall. No one went after him, they were all confused. Echo turned and looked at Rex.

"Did you feel how _hot_ he was?" Rex nodded. He reached for his comm, setting the frequency to what he knew Kix would respond to.

" _Kix, this better be important."_

"It's Rex, something is wrong with Tup."

"... _Talk fast."_

 _"_ We don't really know what happened. He was rocking like he was dizzy, and sort of spaced out, looking in front of him. Then he bolted-"

Kix interrupted him, _"That's not exactly concerning Rex."_

"Well if you would let me finish you would be worried also. When I touched him, he was _radiating_ heat."

There was a pause over the comms

_"Did he look delirious, like he was seeing something that wasn't there?"_

Rex had a look on his face, that wasn't readable. "Yes"

_"Well?"_

" 'Well' what?"

 _"Are you going to tell me where you are? Because I just_ know _you all went after him because you all are smarter than to let him go. You also know I will not be gentle with any of you if you are hurt again if you didn't go after him."_ Kix spoke in an all-knowing, condescending tone like he already knew the answer.

Rex looked to Fives for back up but Fives suddenly found the floor very interesting. The others were the same, avoiding eye contact with Rex at all costs. Jesse was the only one that didn't tear his gaze away from Rex. The captain shot him a pleading look. Jesse vigorously shook his head, eyes wide, not wanting to face the wrath of his lover. Rex looked like he could cry.

 _"Answer me."_ Kix barked. Rex jumped, already planning his funeral. "U-um, w-well. See w-what happened was-"

 _"I swear on everything, I will track all of you do. There is nowhere you can hide. I am going to_ murder _all of you! How could you let him just up and leave?! You know, just get off your asses and help me look for him, and you may live to see another day. If he is delirious, his fever is way too high. Dangerously high. "_

The comm went dead, signaling the end of the conversation. Echo uttered the words that were going through all of their minds.

"Jess', your husband? Is _terrifying..._ "

Hardcase stood up, already heading towards the door. "I for one, don't want to be at the mercy of Kix. So I have an amazing idea." Hardcase said, "Let's listen to Kix, and get the _hells_ out of here."

* * *

When Tup bolted, he wasn't really sure of where he was going. He just ran aimlessly through the halls. 

Soon he could no longer run, and he sluggishly leaned against a random wall. He felt his arm hit something, in the shape of a square. He looked at it, and it was an entry pad, to one of the barracks. Tup, being a curious _osik'ika_ , requested entry and the doors slid open. Upon walking to the barrack room, he discovered that it was the 501st barracks and common room.

He groaned. "Anndddd I went in a giant circle. Great," he said to no one.

He entered his common room, very worn out. He was well informed that he did, in fact, still have a fever. And a high one at that. He collapsed onto one of the couches sinking into it. Part of the reason he ran was that it would better for everyone involved. He would take care of himself, while the others didn't have to watch after him.

His head was spinning so fast he wasn't sure if it would ever stop. He was slowly slipping in and out of consciousness, and he was losing his grip on reality. His body was still in the present, but his mind was in the past. He was reliving previous battles. The ones with the most blood, and screams, and pain, and death. Not all of it was bad though. Tup was also flown back to happy memories. These were memories of his time with his brothers. First meeting Torrent. Being thrown into sparring matches with the 212th. Meeting Comet, his best friend, and the Wolf Pack.

He was jerked out when a hand brushed through his hair. He blinked his eyes open, sleepily. A comforting hand that could be any brother really, never stilled in his long hair. 

Above him, was his dead batch mates, just sitting around. Tup jumped up, heart hammering in his chest. 

'They're not real, they're not real, they're dead, they're gone,' Tup told himself.

"Hi _ori'vod_ ," Finn's soft and quiet voice said. And Tup broke. He let out all the emotions he had been holding in all day. He thought he had accepted their untimely death, but he hadn't.

Tup's panicked eyes scanned the room. The focused on the small storage area with multiple cabinets. He quickly crawled in the cabinet that was at ground level. He curled in on himself, willing his body to disappear.

* * *

Rex and Fives managed to find Kix, who looked defeated.

Fives looked at him sadly, "No luck?"

Kix shook his head. "I asked around the 212th, they hadn't seen him, since yesterday."

"Same with the 104th," Rex chipped in.

"Maybe he is in the barracks? That's the only place we haven't checked."

And that's where they went. They all met up at their common rooms, with no sick Tup in hand.

Kix looked very panicked, he starting pacing a couple of steps before saying, "If he is seeing things then his fever is way above 106."

Soon everyone became panicked. They knew if they didn't find him, he could get himself hurt. Or worse.

A small, quiet whine went across the room. Echo perked up, listening closer. He got closer to the storage area. He stood up with a questioning gaze. "Hypothetically, could Tup fit in one of these?" 

Kix walked over to Echo, going down to his knees. He placed himself in front of the cabinet he guessed held Tup. He slowly opened the door.

Tup was still there, in a ball, saying over and over again, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry." Kix's heart fractured into pieces.

" _Kriff_." Kix grabbed his comm, contacting Helix, from the 212th.

"Helix I need help. You need to get to our common room."

Helix came as fast as he could. He slammed the code in on the entry pad. He ran to Kix's side, taking in the situation. They spoke in a rapid tone, trying to coax Tup out of the cramped place. They failed miserably. He would cower away from them if the reached for him like he was afraid of them. "Should we knock him out?" Helix pulled out a hypo. Kix shook his head.

"Rex, Fives, can you help us out here?" They crouched along with the two. 

" _Ad'ika_ , I need you to come out," Rex spoke in a hushed tone. "I don't know what's going on with you, love. But they're trying to help. Let them." Tup's eyes cleared as if he just seeing the four of them for the first time. He scooted out of the storage, collapsing in the arms of Fives. Fives' rebellious eyes widened at his child's body temperature. 

"Fives, come with us. The only way he's going to cooperate is if you or Rex come." Kix ordered.

They swiftly walked to the medbay. Kix and Helix were still discussing what they could possibly do.

Tup pawed at his brother's shoulder, Fives looked down. "Everything's fuzzy." he slurred. Fives was confused about what that meant but he didn't get the chance to ask. The medbay was very crowded, which in this case, it was good, they needed multiple medics to monitor Tup's vitals. Once they reached the doorway, Tup's fever became too much for his body. He started to convulse wildly in the ARC's arms. Helix and Kix saw this out of the corner of his eye.

"Code Blue!" Helix shouted. Kix grabbed Tup from Fives. A group of other medics came to their aid - either they had patients that could be on their own for a couple of minutes or they had none. Fives was frozen in place, and his hands were shaking slightly.

"I've got him Fives. Step outside if you need to." Kix promised. Fives gave a shaky exhale. "Good idea."

Fives sat on a chair outside of the medbay. He hoped the others would come to find him. He was traumatized at what he saw. He may not be medic but he knew if a fever was so high that is caused a _seizure_ , brain damage could be in the equation of outcomes.

He heard multiple pairs of footsteps walking towards him. "Rayshe'a, what happened?" Rex's soft voice broke through to him. Rex automatically opened his arms, seeing the expression on his boyfriend's face. Fives explained what happened when they set foot in the medbay.

"Well, I guess we'll wait here."

* * *

When Tup slowly regained consciousness, the memories of what happened leading up to the moment came flooding back. Tears slipped out of his eyes, just light tears. A hand reached out to brush away said tears. He could tell it was Rex by the roughness of his palm.

"Damn. I don't even know why I'm crying."

"You just went through a traumatic thing, we honestly are surprised if you _didn't_ let a few tears slip out." Hardcase rationalized with him, being smart for once.

Fives looked down frowning, a thought crossing his mind.

"Why didn't you come to us Tup. That was very dangerous."

Tup huffed a little, "I don't know. A part of me wanted to, but another part said it wasn't worth it."

Kix jumped into the frame. "If you ever, and I mean _ever_ , do something that reckless again, you will never leave this medbay."

Everyone laughed at Kix's proclamation. "Count on Kix to lecture and threaten you when you just woke up." Echo chuckled out.

Tup was able to leave the watchful, and equally terrifying gaze of the medics two days later. They had told him that he had no brain damage done from the seizure. And a week later Kix was still lecturing Tup about self-care. Oh boy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for the late update! Now anything medical in this may not be factual, so don't quote me on any of this. I am still deciding what I am going to do with Comet and Tup, and another chapter is in the works now. I hope I will post it sooner than this one. What do you think? Requests?


	9. Chapter 9- Fives Breaks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Being an ARC becomes a little too much for Fives. He and Rex are having problems, and Tup doesn't know if he is the root of the problem.

Being a trained soldier from birth is not always easy. It's more difficult when a trooper has a higher rank, it is their responsibility to keep everyone alive. They can't crack under pressure on the battlefield. If they crack, people die. But that doesn't mean they can't crack off the field.

That's what Fives was going through. He was being weighed down with pounds and pounds of pressure and stress. With the Chancellor sending them on so many missions, it was destroying Fives and Rex. Their relationship was strained, and hanging on by a loose thread. There was barely any communication between them, they were done with one another, not wanting to deal with each other.

If you really paid attention, you could see the anger rolling off of both of them. Tup was paying attention. He hated the way they were acting, but he didn't understand what happens in a relationship when they fight, because he has never been in a relationship himself. But he couldn't shake the fact that the last argument they had, his name was thrown into the heated conversation. 

'Somehow, I did something to make them fight,' Tup growled in his head.

He was walking in the halls, thoughts wondering. He wasn't letting his eyes leave the ground, then he bumped into a solid, warm bulk. He mumbled a small sorry, and tried to continue on his way, but was stopped by a hand coming up to his bicep.

"What? You going to try and leave without saying hello, right after _you_ bumped into _me_?" 

Tup tore his eyes from the ground at the voice that sounded oddly familiar. The brother he ran into was Boil, who had a smile on his face. Waxer was next to him. Tup would normally give him a sarcastic response but he couldn't find it in his heart to make one. He settled for a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes.

"Guess I wasn't looking where I was going." He tried to leave it at that. But Boil (and Waxer) being the observant little shit he was, could see that something was bothering the younger clone. He quickly stopped Tup from leaving them.

"Whoa, hey, hold up." Waxer said as Boil took Tup by the arm. Tup deflated in defeat at being caught by his older brother.

Boil gave Tup a glace up and down, then crossing physical damage off the list of possibilities. "What's wrong, and don't say you're fine," he interjected at the end after Tup opened his mouth to speak, "Something is wrong kiddo, and we are worried now."

Tup bit his lip, contemplating what to say. He didn't want Ghost Company, more specifically Cody, to think Fives and Rex were not together anymore (because of him is what he thought). He sighed, shifting his weight between both of his legs.

"Um, it's, um." 

Waxer and Boil met each other's eyes, seeing the hesitation in the _young_ adult. Boil placed a finger under Tup's tucked chin, gently forcing his eyes up from the floor. 

"Look. We may not be in Torrent, but Ghost Company, hell, a _lot_ of the alpha companies care about you. We don't want to ignore your well-being, but I don't want you to feel like I'm forcing you. With that said, if you really don't want to talk about it, please tell me, to back the fuck off."

"No, it's not that I don't want to talk about it. I just don't want you guys to worry."

Waxer nodded, "Is something wrong?"

Tup sighed, "No, not with me at least," he hesitated before finishing his thought. 

"It's Fives and Rex. They are, I-I don't know, fighting?" he made it sound like a question."They aren't happy, let's just say that. And the last conversation I heard, my name was thrown into the mixing bowl." Boil and Waxer stared at each other, shocked that Fives and Rex were fighting. But they could understand, they were both very stubborn people, and that they want to do they think is best. But Boil was mad that they didn't keep it behind closed doors, bring others into it, and that Tup noticed.

To Tup's embarrassment, his honey-colored eyes slowly filled with tears. He angrily wiped them away. "I _cannot_ believe I'm crying over this."

"Well, we know they are like parents to you, so you're going to be upset. It's not fun seeing couples fight." 

Tup nodded to the ground before he said, "I have to go train, see you later."

Boil released Tup. "And if things go south, either go to us, Ponds, Bly or the Wolf Pack, understand me?" Tup nodded.

"Alright, see ya later, kid."

* * *

Fives and Echo were in the training room, one's that the ARC's have access to, if they wanted to use it. Fives and Echo liked the company of their brothers but sometimes they just wanted to talk while sparring, alone.

"So, what's going on with you and Rex," Echo asked nonchalantly while aiming a kick at his brother's chest. Fives dodged it, grabbing his leg, forcing Echo to drop to the ground. Echo retaliated by wrapping his other leg around Fives' back and yanked him to the ground.

"Nothing."

Echo scoffed at Fives, "Yeah right, and Hardcase isn't a trigger happy clone. Seriously Fives, are you guys, like not together or what?"

Echo finally managed to pin him to the ground, putting him in a headlock. Fives struggled in the lock, the last resort to get out of Echo's arms. He tapped out after twenty seconds, still not answering the question. Echo analyzed him, wanting him to talk.

"Rayshe'a _?"_ he whispered. Fives let his head drop to the floor in despair.

"I don't know Eyayah _,_ I really don't," Fives whispered back, equally as quiet as Echo was. Echo laid down next to him, placing his head on Fives' chest, offering the comfort that he needed. He gently took Fives' hand in his own, giving a small squeeze, like he has done many times before. Fives squeezed back.

"We don't like seeing you fight, even if you don't explode at each other. Did something happen between you two, that would cause you or him to be mad."

Fives just shook his head, "It just happened. I don't think either us _did_ something, it was like one day we were fine, then the next we weren't talking really." Fives let his unshed tears fall from his normally playful eyes.

Echo looked up, hearing him making soft sounds. He spun both of them up, bring him to his chest. "Hey, it's okay, it's okay. Shhhhh sh sh sh," Echo softly cooed in his ear. "It'll be okay, no matter what the outcome is.

Rex was in a similar situation. Ponds, Bly, Wolffe, and he were at the shooting range, missing Cody as he was in a debriefing for a new mission the 212th was on. 

Wolffe had missed the center for the fourth time.

"Damn."

"Can you not aim, _vod?"_ Bly teased, taking his eyes off the target. Wolffe gave his older brother a gesture that his _buir_ would smack him for.

"Hey don't judge my shooting, I've got one of the best sharpshooters in all of our battalions _combined."_ Wolffe referenced Comet, who was very good at far (and close) range shooting.

"Well, he obviously didn't learn from you." Ponds snorted.

They continued to smack talk to each other but took notice of the fact that their little brother was quiet. Wolffe gave him a glance, then asked, "You and Fives aren't okay, are you?

Rex shot him a glare, not wanting to talk about it. "Okay touchy topic, good to know."

Rex rolled his eyes, not amused with his brothers. The real reason he didn't answer the question is that he didn't know what was the case between the two of them. He knew Fives got stressed very easily, it's just the way he was. But Rex also knew he himself would close himself off when he was stressed which doesn't help the problem

He loved Fives, don't get him wrong. They've been together so long, (not as long as Kix and Jesse) but they seem like they just don't work anymore, even if none of the admitted it. They had somethings to work out.

* * *

"Are you listening?" Rex whispered/snapped at him, and waved a hand in front of his eyes. Fives focused, he just spaced out in a meeting with the Generals, Kenobi, Skywalker, Secura, Windu, and Plo. They were going over battle plans, but it wasn't very important. The mission wasn't for a couple of days. 

Fives gave him a glare, silently saying 'not here'. Wolffe, Ponds, Bly, and Cody all shared glances, predicting the argument about to explode. Cody had told his older brothers the tension growing between the captain and the ARC, after learning that Tup ran into and told Boil and Waxer what was happening. Bly and Ponds were mostly shocked but also sad, they have seen couples in their own battalions have problems. Wolffe wasn't surprised, him being the sneaky bastard he was, had overheard some conversation between Comet and Tup.

Rex gave Fives the hand signal that read 'Fine, later.' Fives gave the smallest nod.

The briefing was done and over with, Fives and Rex both simultaneously grabbed each other's arms and walked out the door.

The Generals took notice of what just went down. Obi-Wan gave Cody a questioning look. Cody looked to Ponds, who nodded.

"Rex and Fives are, having problems," he chose his words carefully. Understanding crossed all of the Jedi's eyes -but you could see Master Plo's glance.

The Jedi found out about some of the clone couples after they looked into their attachment rules. They decided, to be able to fight in a war, you must have emotion, which means it's just human nature to form friendships or even relationships. After they became more open with their men, they trusted them so much they told them that some of them loved each other.

A few minutes later, all of them were able to hear an argument going on outside of the doors.

Cody let his head drop with a bang with a sigh.

"Codes, what is it?" Wolffe asked gently, placing a hand on his second youngest brother's shoulder. The Jedi look at the scene with fondness in their eyes at their commanders.

Cody looked up with slight boredom in his gold eyes. "We all know how stubborn those two are, this could go on for _hours_ ," he finished with a groan. "And I swear to the gods, if they take their fight to the barracks I'm going to kill them both."

"Why is that?" Mace asked curiously.

"Because I know that the other members of Torrent are there, which means their youngest is there. And I think I speak for all of us clones when I say we don't want him to see that."

"Tup's still young, and Rex and Fives have become parental figures to him, even if he denies it." Bly filled in

Aayla frowned, "How old is he?" Bly looked away from General, as did the others.

When Plo, Aayla, and Mace turned to Anakin and Obi-Wan, they also weren't making eye contact.

"Wolffe, is he older than Comet?" Plo asked his son. Wolffe shook his head after a moment of not responding.

Ponds lucked up enough courage to look at Mace, "Tup _just_ turned eighteen."

The silence was deafening.

"Did you two know this?"

"Yes, we knew how young he is."

Plo shook his head, "He doesn't act like he eighteen, he acts like he's twenty-three."

Anakin nodded, "He's very mature."

"Well, we know he doesn't get his maturity from you Anakin," Kenobi teased he's old padawan.

They continued to enjoy each other's company. Until they all agreed they needed their sleep.

* * *

Rex and Fives stood outside of the briefing room, just looking at each other. They had just finished an argument that neither of them wanted to remember. Words were said amongst them that made them question everything. Rex softened tremendously after he understood the words that Fives said to him, and more importantly, he said to Fives.

"Fives I-." he tried to advanced towards his... he didn't even know what he was to him right now.

"Don't," Fives said brokenly.

Rex sighed in frustration, trying to rack his brain for a way to fix this, but he doubted he could. 

"I don't," Rex stopped his sentence, not believing what he was about to say.

"I don't think this is working, Fives. All we do is argue now. I don't want to put the others, to put Tup through this anymore. And I can't do it anymore."

Fives nodded dejectedly, "You're right." He didn't want to put his kid through this anymore, but they would take the fact the most of their arguments were about Tup, to their graves.

He slowly stepped away from his now ex-boyfriend. He looked back up at him.

"What are we doing with Tup?"

Rex crossed his arm like he was trying to protect himself. "Unless _you_ want to tell him, I'm not saying anything. You and I know he'll think it's his fault."

They agreed that Tup should never find out what happened, it would crush him. They separated in the hallway, stepping away from each other.

Fives looked up with broken golden eyes, wanting this to be a dream. "I'm sorry Rex."

Rex gave him a half-smile that had no joy in it.

"I'm sorry too."

That's where they left it, none of them trying to fix the permanent crack in their relationship that will last forever. 

Rex closed his eyes, leaning heavily against the wall once Fives was out of sight.

He heard rapid whispering somewhere behind him. He knew his squad mates had been there for the breakup.

"You guys are horrible at being quiet," Rex said loudly, choked up.

Ponds, Bly, Wolffe, and Cody emerged from a shadow sheepishly.

Cody cautiously went over to Rex, "You okay Rex'ika, besides what just happened?"

Rex shook his head, and then gently pressed up against Cody's frame. Cody's arms encircled him, heart heavy, not wanting to see either of them hurt.

* * *

Tup heard soft crying in the dead silence.

He didn't know who it was for a couple of minutes. He was positive it wasn't Hardcase, Echo, Jesse or Kix. Kix was in the medbay, and the others were god knows where with some members of Ghost. He declined their offer to go with them.

He declined because Fives had come back to the barracks, crying. Echo took him in the bunk area while Tup and the others stayed in the rec room. They didn't know what caused the breakdown, only Echo did, but they weren't going to ask.

So he would stay with Fives even if they didn't exchange words.

The crying had begun to increase. Tup had a feeling it was his older brother and he was right.

Tup followed the cries to the 'fresher. Fives was hunched over in one of the corners, sobbing harshly.

"Fives?" he called softly, not aware of what to do.

Fives ignored him completely, still think about the way he ended things with Rex. He loved Rex, so much, but he had been causing pain to his boyfriend. He wished he could take everything he said back. He wanted to take it back.

Tup was _freaking_ out on the inside, he had never seen Fives like this. It was terrifying. He didn't want to leave the room and have Fives be alone with himself, where he could easily hurt himself.

Tup was now crying not knowing what to do. He tried to get FIves to talk to him but nothing worked, Fives was just getting more worked up and Tup was at his wit's end.

He did the first thing that came to mind. He grabbed his comm and put in Kix's frequency.

_"Kix."_

"Kix something is wrong with Fives. He's sitting in a corner and having, I don't know, a breakdown?" Tup cried softly.

_"Okay. Tup everything is okay, I'm coming right now, understand?"_

"Yes." He clicked off the comm, shutting his eyes closed. He tried to stay calm in case something happened with Fives. 

Rex's comm chimed.

"Rex."

_"I don't give a damn if you guys split up or fought. Tup just commed me saying the Fives just broke down. So get off your ass and go to him."_

"Kix I don't think-"

_"I swear if you say 'not a good idea' I will slap you. I know you two still care about each other, so go to your boyfriend, makeup with each other, and don't be a jerk. I'll be there soon."_

* * *

Tup heard the door open and he rushed towards the person who entered the room. He didn't care if it wasn't Kix, he just wanted one of his older brothers. It turned out to be Rex, with Boil and Waxer hovering near the door.

Rex hugged Tup tightly, scanning the room, seeing none of the others.

"Hey, kiddo. Why don't you go with Boil and Waxer, hm?" Tup nodded into Rex's chest, pulling away.

Waxer stepped forward, going into big brother mode. He wrapped an arm around Tup's shoulder while said teen leaned closer to Waxer's comforting gesture, being taken out of the room.

Rex walked over, to the crying ARC. No words were spoken when he reached out for Fives. He climbed into Rex's lap, curling closer to him. Rex's chin was pressed on the top of Fives' hair. Rex stroked his back gently, murmuring phrases in his ear.

That continued for an hour. Rex holding Fives and Fives breaking down. Rex used the process of elimination to figure out what caused Fives' to have a breakdown. Most of it was stress but a significant part was the 'break up' they had. 

Seeing Fives so upset hit Rex hard in the rib cage. He was realizing that they need each other to survive this war. 

"I'm so sorry Fives. We made the wrong decision." Rex voiced once Fives had calmed down. He softly nuzzled farther into Rex's chest and said, "I'm sorry too, I went about it the wrong way." 

Rex and Fives slowly stood from their seated positions, and Rex groaned in discomfort.

"Oh hush you, I've been sitting way longer than you."

Rex ignored the remark but still smiled. 

"Should we go steal our kid back from Ghost?"

* * *

Tup dried his tears with his hand, once Waxer and Boil worked with him long enough to calm him down.

"You okay now?" Waxer asked. Tup nodded, leaning back into Boil's torso, closing his eyes. Boil made an 'aww' expression without the noise, hugging Tup closer. 

That's how they stayed until the rec door hissed open. Rex and Fives walked in smiling at the scene and approached the trio on the couch. They sat and chatted for a while. 

Tup was pulled from his slumber after thirty minutes by arms pulling him away from Boil. He didn't object he just wanted to sleep.

"It's just us Tup'ika. Just us."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a little different than the suggestion I got, but still had the key parts. The next chapter is Comet and Tup. I'm not saying the outcome of their relationship. You'll have to read to find out, but let me know what you hope/want it to be the outcome.  
> What do you think? Requests?


	10. Chapter 10- Comet (Pt. 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It was Tup and Comet against the world. But will they remain together?

Tup was still new to Torrent, having been with the company for a couple of months. He had easily become close with the other battalions and Alpha squads, except one. The 104th -the Wolfpack. Tup was aware that the commander was Rex's squadmate from Kamino. From with the others told him, the battalion was intimidating until you got to know them.

For the past few months, the 501st and 104th have not worked with each other on a mission. They had done previous assignments with them, but ever since Tup has been with the 501st, they have always been on different missions. Tup was curious about what they would be like, but he knew he would meet them soon. But he met them sooner than expected.

Tup and the others were in the mess, right after coming back from a mission. They were all tired but their hunger would not allow them to sleep. Rex was spacing out, not even trying to focus on anything. Kix's eyelids were heavy, with dark bags under his eyes, he had to deal with a lot of wounded that mission. Jesse was in a similar state. Fives head was resting on his arms which were folded on the table. Echo's eyes were closed, not asleep just yet, head leaning on his left fist.

The door opened revealing another battalion that didn't look much better. Five of the members broke off after getting food, crossing the room to reach the table Torrent was sitting at. The five sat on the other side of the table.

Tup could see that one of them was a medic because of the signal on his helmet, that was tucked under his arm. The medic sat, facing Kix. One clone, with bleach-blond hair that almost looked sliver, sat in front Echo, who was next to Tup. The other clone had two red streaks in his hair with two scars on his face, let out a huff and sat down facing Jesse. An older brother, who had a cybernetic eye with a long scar coming from it, was obviously their commander, took a seat, across from Rex.

The last clone was easily the baby of the group. He couldn't be much older than Tup himself. Tup could tell he was the youngest, by the way, he subconsciously got closer towards one of his brothers. Tup had a small smile on his face when he saw that. But he was also spunky, and playful, judging by the way he was acting with his brothers when they entered the mess hall. 

And he sat down in front of Tup.

They exchanged soft smiles with each other before minding their business. 

Rex looked up, examining the commander in front of him before smirking.

"Lookin' a little rough there _ori'vod_."

'Huh, so that's Rex's final squadmate.' Tup thought. He had met Rex's other squadmates, Cody, Bly, and Ponds, but he had never met the commander of the 104th.

The commander snorted sarcastically, "You're not looking too good yourself Rex'ika." 

Wolffe's eye scanned the table, then landed on Tup. He gave a very, very small grin, but Tup felt like if he told anyone, the older clone might rip his throat out.

"He yours?" he asked Rex.

Rex sighed, "Yes, Wolffe, he is ours. Great analyzing skills."

Wolffe looked at Tup again, slowly becoming confused. He glanced between Tup and the other teen across from him. Rex cursed under his breath, knowing what Wolffe was about to ask.

"How old is he?" Wolffe almost growled. Tup slightly tried to duck away from view, a little scared of the commander. He felt a light tap on his foot. He looked up and saw the young clone give him a reassuring smile like he was trying to say he would be okay.

"He's seventeen."

Wolffe was about to let out a string of curses before the young Wolf Pack softly smacked him in the abs.

"Wolffe, I am _literally_ seventeen also."

"Alright, you have a point." Wolffe sighed.

"But Comet turns eighteen in five months right?" Jesse asked. The teenager, Comet, nodded, then looked to Tup.

"When do you turn eighteen?"

"Sad to say but you're older than me, I'm eighteen in ten months," Tup said in a fake disappointed voice. "I'm used to it though, everyone seems to be older than me these days. I use to be one of the oldest in my training squads, and now I'm the youngest. Fantastic isn't."

Comet laughed at his answer. "Yes, it's not exactly fun to be the youngest, especially when you have knuckle-head idiots for older brothers."

Tup pointed a finger at him, "But at least we can get away with things that others can't."

All of Torrent slowly turned in their seats to stare at Tup. Fives cocked an eyebrow.

" _Kriff_." Tup muttered under his breath.

"What do you mean, 'get away with things'," Kix asked in a condescending tone.

"Nothing! Forget I said anything." Tup said a little too quickly.

Kix gave him a knowing look but dropped it.

They continued to talk about random topics. Like really random. But at least it allowed Tup to get used to the Wolfpack, and he was starting to really like Comet, he was a nice kid. He still had the innocence kids their age should have. But he also seemed like a really laid-back person. The others noticed how alike Tup and Comet were, and they were positive the two of them knew also. They would steal glances at each other as they could communicate without saying anything. It's like they were twins.

"So Tup, you got any batch mates in the 501st?" Sinker asked offhandedly. Everyone in Torrent stiffened. It was still a bad topic for Tup, only happened almost three months ago.

"No, they're all in a different battalion, I think. I haven't seen them since I came to the 501st." Tup fired back immediately. The other five clones nodded, falling for Tup's stretch of the truth. It wasn't a direct lie, he hadn't seen his batch mates since the explosion because they were... well dead.

Rex was surprised that Tup managed to get past the pack, let alone Wolffe.

Comet leveled him with a suspicious look, then let the expression drop. Tup let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.

Wolffe looked confused. "How did you get into the 501st and not them? Normally you kids get grouped together."

Tup looked down in thought for a moment before moving his eyesight up again. "Well, Rex liked me and asked if I wanted to be transferred to Torrent. I didn't want to leave them, seeing as I was the oldest, but eventually my youngest, Finn convinced me to go, without them. We were close so they didn't really mind." 

They had discussed that matter on Kamino. They all agreed that if one of them gets offered to be moved to a unit, they should go. It may sting a little to be away from each other but they didn't want to hold _anyone_ back. They were all so close. "Emphasis on ' _were"_ Tup thought bitterly. 

Echo had fallen asleep on the table, exhausted. Fives snickered, enjoying the moment so much. But he did feel bad. If Echo was tired enough to fall asleep at the table, then he wasn't getting sleep at night. 

"When do we have training Rex?" Fives asked.

"About ten minutes. Do you want to wake him up now?"

Fives gave a groan, "I really don't want to, but I have to, don't I?"

Wolffe raised a hand, "Allow me." 

Wolffe reached over the table and gently pushed Echo's shoulder.

"Wakey wakey, Echo."

Echo jerked awake, before groaning in annoyance, " _Kriff_ off Wolffe, I'm awake now." Echo rubbed his eyes, trying to stay awake. "Can we just go to training already? Or I'm going to fall asleep again."

Everyone laughed, all standing up, ready to part ways. 

Tup and Comet looked at each other briefly.

"See ya around," Comet smiled, then gave a joking wink. Tup chuckled, and rolled his eyes.

"See you Comet."

* * *

Tup and Comet had started to hang out more after their first meeting. They had begun to trust each other a lot. They were easily best friends, everyone could see that. They would always cause irritation to one other with teasing but it was all good fun. It reminded people of Rex and Cody, or Fives and Echo.

Tup had known Comet for three months, but Comet didn't know everything about him. He still believed that Tup's batch mates were just transferred to another unit, nothing big. And Tup would mentally pat himself on the back every time he dodged the topic of his batch mates.

But Comet wasn't stupid, Tup knew that. It was only a matter of time until his friend figured out what happened. Tup's only fear was if Comet found out, would he think he lied about it, and he would also have to tell him he had anxiety. That was the part he was most afraid of. But he would lie about things so Comet wouldn't connect the dots and find out everything.

Tup woke up earlier than he had anticipated, having a feeling of doom in his body. He curled back in a ball, whimpering softly. He didn't know why he was so upset, but the anxiety didn't exactly need a reason to mess with a person.

Tup's soft crying caused Fives to stir. Fives groggily opened his eyes, wondering who was up that early, propping himself up in Rex's arms. He looked promptly around the barracks searching for the center of the sound. His golden-brown eyes fell onto his younger brother, and then let a sigh fall from his mouth.

He jostled Rex awake, sitting up fully. Rex had the same reaction to being woken up. Fives tilted his head in the direction of Tup, getting out of the bunk, pulling Rex with him.

Fives sat down next to Tup, reaching out a hand to cradle the back of Tup's skull.

"Bad day already, _ad'ika_?" Rex asked gently him, knowing the answer. Tup swiped away the tears that were previously cascading down his face. He gave a minuscule nod, moving to Fives. The older trooper opened his arms, giving Tup a tight squeeze. Tup sunk into his brother's embrace, hugging him back.

"Do you want to go to training? I don't want you to get hurt." Fives said concerned about the others being too rough.

"I'm fine. I don't want the admirals or general getting mad."

Fives and Rex knew Anakin wouldn't have minded, but they let it go.

When all of them entered the training room, the 104th was also there. Upon entering, Comet took one look at Tup and was aware that something was wrong. He wanted to go over to him and demand to know what was bothering him but he assumed that it wouldn't help the situation. So he kept his distance.

He watched at Tup and other 501st brothers spar on the mats. He watched as Tup landed a kick to the other clone's chest, knocking him away. But his small victory only lasted a couple more seconds. Tup was soon on his back, tapping out.

"Damn, I'm surprised Tup didn't try that little trick when he's on the ground, where he kicks your feet out." one 501st clone Comet didn't know said, beside him.

"Yeah, the kid must have something going on with him." another spoke. That got Comet thinking, of what could possibly be wrong with his friend.

Tup walked away after getting a hand from the other brother that pinned him down. He shakily walked over to Kix, Rex, and the others. His hand started to fidget back and forth, warning him that a panic attack was coming. He was so quiet when he walked over the others didn't notice.

Tup tried to speak, but he felt like his airway was closed. He gently pawed at Rex's shoulder, getting his attention. Rex was startled by the sudden touch but wiped around to look at Tup. All their gazes softened.

"An attack?" Kix asked quietly. Tup vigorously nodded. Some unknown groups of clones made some loud sounds, causing Tup to jump and whimper.

"Stop it stop it stop it," Tup whispered, seemingly aimed at no one in particular, more so at the sound. He brought his hands up to his head to hold it, shutting his eyes closed.

"Love, let's go somewhere else okay?" Rex said in his ear. Tup leaned closer to Rex, letting him take him out of the room, with Fives tailing along.

Comet watched as Tup was taken out by Rex and Fives. His instincts were yelling at him to make sure he was okay, but he knew he would be okay with the ARC and captain. No one seemed to notice the absent members but if they did, they didn't question it.

Later that day, Comet had commed Tup seeing if he was okay. Of course, Tup said he was okay but he knew better than to believe him. He had automatically said 'I call bullshit' and announced he was going to Tup's barracks. Tup didn't even try to stop him. 

Comet walked thought the 501st common room doors, after punching in the access code, seeing no one present in said room. He guessed that they all went out, except Tup. He walked across the floor, reaching the bunk room doors. He gave a light knock, warning Tup that he was there, then hit the datapad and watched the doors slide open. 

Upon the base doors hissing open, he saw Tup sitting on his bunk, legs crossed, not looking up. The Wolfpack teen went over to his friend's bunk, sitting so he could look at Tup. He sat so he was mirroring the other's body position.

Comet took a breath, trying to figure out what to say.

"Look." he started, but Tup kept his eyes glued to the bunk. "You don't have to answer, at all. But Tup. What the hell happened?"

Tup fiddled with the sheets underneath him. He debated everything. He debated what would happen if he told the other boy what would happen. Would he think he shouldn't be here? Would Comet think he should be sent back to Kamino to be recommissioned? Would Comet keep a friendship with a person who lied to his face? Would Comet-

"Tup, I can _see_ the gears turning in that head of yours. Whatever you're afraid of, don't be. It's just me." Comet said warmly with a kind smile.

"Do you remember, when we first met? And how Sinker asked me about my batch mates?" Tup asked hesitantly. Comet nodded, remembering the moment he first laid eyes on Tup. 'Focus Comet.' he told himself, his ADHD kicking in.

"I lied." Tup blurted out before he dropped his head in his hands. Comet was confused, not fully understanding.

"Wait, what did you lie about?" Comet asked. Tup raised his head to give his slow friend a look like he was trying to get Comet to think it over.

So Comet though again. He went back to that day.

_"So Tup, you got any batch mates in the 501st?" Sinker asked offhandedly. Everyone in Torrent stiffened. It was still a bad topic for Tup, only happened almost three months ago._

_"No, they're all in a different battalion, I think. I haven't seen them since I came to the 501st." Tup fired back immediately._

The word _think_ was the keyword. Tup just passed it on as just an afterthought, that they may not still be alive. And if they _had_ died before Rex noticed him, then it was a fact that Tup hadn't seen them since going into the 501st. Comet had also seen the way Torrent reacted to the question like it was a bad topic to talk about it.

"Oh," Comet said plainly after the revelation. "What happened?"

Tup's eyes became cold and distant. 

"There was an IED, that was coming towards our position. I yelled to get down, but it didn't do anything. And it left me with a fucking anxiety disorder." Tup began to shed tears at the agonizing pain of losing his little brothers. 

Comet was shell-shocked, to say the least. He always thought that they all had a fight, or something similar. Comet reached out, pulling the upset boy towards him. He didn't really know what he was doing. He just was doing what his older brothers did. At least this was coming to him mostly as a natural instinct.

"Hey, it's okay it's okay. There's nothing wrong with that. I'm not going to leave you. Ever."

He held Tup for what felt like hours, letting the information sink in about his friend, his _best_ friend. He moved into a laying position, with Tup on top of his chest. He gently unwound Tup's hair, lightly shaking it out. He continued his fingers through Tup's soft hair.

He heard the door slide and saw a figure standing in the doorway. Comet focused his eyes and saw it was Kix. The medic smiled sadly and left the room, giving the pair some space.

When Comet looked down, he saw that Tup had fallen asleep, tear tracks still visible. He tenderly wiped the tears away, feeling a surge of protectiveness course through him, like he would do damage to anyone that hurt Tup.

'Whoa.' he thought.

...That's odd.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry (not sorry) for the cliffhanger. But I am sorry about the sort of late update. Not going to lie, I struggled with this one a bit. There will be a part two yes, but let me know if you want a chapter or two in between, or just want me to go straight into the second part.  
> What do you think?


	11. Chapter 11- Echo

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Echo has been spending nights in the gym, but why?

Sleep. It's one of the best things in the universe. Not just because it's good for your health. It's also a way to relax for once. 

Echo had been neglecting his health. He wasn't going to sleeping until early hours in the morning and getting roughly three hours of sleep. He had been spending most of his time in the gym, destroying punching bags. It's a stress reliever for him.

And that's was what he was doing one night. Shocker.

Echo was slamming the bag, making it rock back and forth. He normally doesn't put his full attention into hitting it, just seventy-five percent. He just starts thinking about previous missions, moments from a long time ago, and takes it out on a bag.

But one night he was thinking about something else, his brothers. He missed them. He would always hang out with them when Torrent was all together, but now, he was running low on steam. He wouldn't blatantly blow them off, but he would decline offers to do things sometimes. He just too tired. 

He called it a night, after almost breaking his hand. He snuck back into the barracks, climbing the ladder of his and Fives' bunk. He collapsed onto the bunk.

Tup woke up first, stretching his body out. He lazily stayed in his bunk, choosing to fall in and out of sleep for a little while. He was torn from his sleep a couple of hours before, hearing Echo come back in the room. He wanted to ask him if he was okay but he decided to delay his question. 

"Rise and shine, Tup'ika." a hand shook his shoulder. He blinked his eyes open, seeing Kix standing over him. He rubbed his eyes, batting Kix's hand away playfully. He looked up at Echo's bunk, seeing him tossing around. He and Kix gave each other a look that was explaining the same thing. Echo didn't fall asleep.

* * *

Echo and Fives were up for sparring. Every clone in the training room gathered around to watch the two. They were the big bad ARCs of the legion, it was fun to watch them spar. 

"So, how's your sleep schedule these past two weeks?" Fives asked casually, blocking one of Echo's punches. Echo glared at him, throwing another punch, a more forceful one, hitting Fives in the sternum.

Fives recoiled at the hit. "Damn," he whispered. Echo grinned a little maliciously, kicking at his knee.

'Guess I pissed him off.'

Echo grappled his brother to the ground, more like slammed him. The other clones that gathered around, gave a sympathetic noise, _hearing_ how hard Fives hit the ground. 

'Definitely made him mad.'

Echo leaned closer, " _Kriff_ off Fives, I'm perfectly fine."

Fives got up and painfully walked over to his lover. Rex crossed his arms, a scrutinizing gaze aimed at his boyfriend.

"What are you up to?"

"Something is wrong with Echo, so I'm keeping an eye on him," Fives explained. Rex nodded, understanding Fives' protectiveness. 

Tup walked over to Echo, sitting next to him, leaning on his shoulder. Echo looked down at him with a fond smile. "Whatcha doing there?"

Tup shrugged, burrowing his face further into Echo's shoulder. "Nothing, just miss you. I don't see you much, your busy with your ARC stuff, and I'm busy training." Echo wrapped an arm around his little brother's lean shoulders.

"I'm sorry Tup."

"Whatever let's go to the bags. I'm bored."

Echo and Tup crossed to the bags. They punched them for about an hour before Echo was running out of steam. After he finished a huge punch, he swayed. Tup ghosted his hands around the tired ARC. Echo looked very sick.

"Echo, you are not okay, are you? And don't lie." Tup asked, scared of what was happening.

Echo could not concentrate on a single word his brother was saying. Tup tried snapping his fingers in front of Echo's eyes. Nothing.

Echo was finally snapped out of it for a few seconds, just enough to say, "Get Fives."

Tup ran off to find Fives. He saw him with Rex. Rex saw him looking panicked and tapped Fives on the shoulder.

"Tup, first calm down, we see you scared about something," Fives told him soothingly. Tup took a deep breath, calming down.

"I thought Echo looked tired. Then all of a sudden he acted like he was dizzy. He could not concentrate on my voice at all. I don't know what's happening."

Fives turned to Rex, "Stay with him, I'll deal of Echo." Rex gave a curt nod, taking Tup somewhere to distract him. 

Fives ran to Echo, crouching in front of him. He took in Echo appearance, seeing the dark shadows under his eyes.

"You _karking_ idiot," Fives said softly. He grabbed Echo, dragging him up from the floor. 

"Alright, let go to the bunks, you need sleep, now."

Fives and Echo slowly made their way to the bunks, having to stop once and awhile. They picked up Kix on the way there, filling him in.

Fives put in the code, walking Echo to the bunks. He debated once they reached their shared bunks. Echo's bed was on the top, but no way in hell Fives was letting Echo climb up there. He sat down in the bed, laying Echo down with his head in his brother's lap. Fives softly stroked Echo's hair as Kix checked over him.

"Echo, you haven't been sleeping have you?"

Echo waited a few seconds and then shook his head.

"You want to tell me why?" Kix asked. Echo fidgeted with his hands.

"Stress, I guess. Insomnia a little bit also."

Kix nodded, and up a hypo. He gently as possible jabbed the hypo in his neck.

"Just get some sleep, for now, we'll figure things out later."

Echo fell asleep, not fighting the sedative. Tup walked in a couple minutes later, stopping and looking at the scene. Fives gave him a smile, motioning for him to come over. Tup hesitantly sat down, afraid of waking up his brother. Tup saw that Echo looked more relaxed, but then again he was knocked out.

"You going to tie him to the bunk tonight," Tup chuckled. 

"You bet your _shebs_ I will."

Echo slowly opened his eyes, seeing someone laying down beside him. He then noticed that he wasn't in his bunk, he was on a ground level bunk. It was dark, he wasn't able to see much. He felt the arms around his contract.

"Go the eff to sleep _Eyayah._ You need it." Echo chuckled lightly, shifting around to put his face in Fives' chest. He relaxed once again

and let out a happy sigh, closing his eyes again.

Fives woke up in the morning, having Echo still attached to him. Kix came over and whispered to him, "Let him sleep for today. I don't like it, but I'll hit him with another hypo."

Fives carefully detached his brother form him, moving him under the covers. He leaned down and pressed his lips on Echo temple, and then walked out for training.

He would kill Echo if he did something like that again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this is short, sorry! I stopped working on the AU you for a couple weeks and now I'm working on it again. Our two lovely boys, Tup and Comet, will be back in the next chapter for part two.  
> What do you think?


	12. Chapter 12- Comet (Pt. 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tup and Comet have been think about some things. Will they say anything, is the question.
> 
> Warnings: Suicide of a minor character in the beginning. Please read at your own discretion.

The Wolfpack's immediate members were sitting in the common room. The rest of the battalion was somewhere else, whether it was the mess hall or the training room. Sinker and Boost were sitting on the couch, which had been abused by the battalion throwing each other around. Comet was draped across Wolffe's lap, drifting in and out of sleep. Wolffe was running his finger through Comet's soft hair, talking in low tones to Sinker and Boost.

Comet knew if he fell asleep, Wolffe would make him go to their barracks, but he didn't want to leave them. He enjoyed his brother's company, even if they were annoying.

"Comet, you need to sleep, pup." Sinker chuckled seeing Comet keep blinking his eyes, struggling to stay awake. Comet grumbled a little. "Don't wanna."

Wolffe took hold of his shoulder, turning his younger brother towards him. He did a once over on Comet, seeing he was tired.

"Kid, just go to sleep, we'll be there soon," Wolffe ordered. Comet rolled off of the commander, getting a pat on the back from him.

"See you soon." Boost told him.

"Night guys."

Comet took the short trip to the barracks, but not before passing the other barrack door, for the non-alpha members, seeing someone in there. He slowly walked back into the opening, seeing one of his brothers sitting on one of the bunks. Judging by the detailing on the armor, it was someone from the Wolfpack.

"Copper?" Comet called quietly. "What are-"

Comet stopped when he caught a glimpse of Copper's blaster in his hand. Copper had distant eyes, but when they met each other's eyes, Copper's were empty, not like his normal eyes.

"Dammit." Copper cursed, moving the blaster out of Comet's sight. Comet was confused, and frozen in the doorway, wondering why he wasn't with the others.

"Comet, walk away. Please. Forget you saw me." Copper begged him. Comet nodded dumbstruck, backing up.

Copper sighed before he spoke again.

"Comet, you know I love you right?"

Comet frowned, and stopped once more, looking back into the room. "Yeah of course. I love you too," he told his brother. He was getting scared, Copper wasn't one to express his affection towards his brothers. He had very rarely said something that sentimental before.

Copper gave him a weak smile, and nodded, looking down again. Comet started to walk towards his bunk area. His brain was screaming that something was wrong and he should tell Wolffe, but he didn't. 

And that was a mistake.

Less than ten minutes later, a blaster shot rang through the barracks. Comet quickly shot up and ran to where he thought the shot came from. He reached the other barracks, he hesitated before the entry pad. He wasn't sure if he wanted to see what was inside. He hit the pad, and the doors hissed open.

He almost passed out.

"Wolffe!" he screamed bloody murder, but he already heard footsteps before he yelled. Comet's hands started to shake, and tears sprung into his eyes. He ran forward to the limp body on the floor, blood flowing from his head and spreading onto the floor. The blaster he had was on the floor, the smell of ozone coming from it. Comet hands soon became covered in blood.

The multiple pairs of footsteps slide to a stop.

 _"Osik."_ Sinker whispered. Boost clung to Sinker's arm. Wolffe became crestfallen and pulled out his comm.

"Arks, something-just get to the barracks. It's Copper." 

Comet was still stuck in his position on his knees, staring at his hands.

"He's not dead, he's not dead, he can't be dead," he whispered.

The three other clones all looked at each other. Wolffe stepped into the room, going towards the boy in front of him. He crouched down next to him, "Pup, come on." Wolffe took hold of Comet's wrist, slowly pulling him away from Copper's body.

Arks arrived and soon the rest of the battalion. Arks was trying to do as much as he could to save his fallen brother but knew the truth. Copper was dead. Once Arks turned around with tears forming in his eyes, they all knew too.

Comet broke free of Wolffe's and ran out of the room.

"Comet!" one of the Wolfpack yelled.

"Come back!" another shouted. But Comet ignored them.

Torrent and Ghost was walking through the halls, making their way to the barracks. They were enjoying a conversation when they caught sight of a teenager sitting in the halls, sobbing. They were in their blacks and curled into a ball. They soon realized that it was Comet. They all stopped simultaneously before Tup stepped forward.

"Comet what's wrong," Tup asked the Wolfpack teen. Comet looked up, amber eyes bloodshot. Tup beckoned Comet forward, and Comet slowly stepped towards him. Tup met him halfway, stopping before him. He looked down at Comet's hands, seeing them stained a crimson color.

Kix and Helix saw Tup's head dip to the crying brother's hands, and their eyes fell there as well. They immediately went into medic mode, seeing the blood-like substance on his hands. "Comet. Is that your blood?" Kix asked gently. Comet shook his head.

"Who's is it kiddo?" Rex asked, concerned about his older brother's and the entire Wolfpack's charge. Comet bit his lip, shaking his head. Cody took one step forward. "Comet. Who's is it?'

"Copper's." he let out a whimper when he said the name. Tup looked momentarily horrified at the very open-ended answer, but he shook the feeling off. He titled Comet's chin up to look him in the eye.

"I'm going to hug you, okay?" Tup told, knowing he was in a sensitive state. Tup put a hand on the back of Comet's neck and brought him closer. Comet latched onto him, sobbing even harder.

Tup softly stroked his hair, trying to calm him down. "I'm here Com'ika. You can cry, I am _not_ letting you go."

Comet didn't say a word the whole time Tup held him. Tup would rather die than let Comet suffer alone, but he had a feeling that wasn't a normal thing to think about a _friend_.

Cody grabbed his commlink, calling his third oldest brother. 

_"Wolffe"_

"Hey. Rex and I have Comet." Cody side pulling Rex to the side. They heard Wolffe sigh in relief.

 _"Thank you. He just bolted after what happened."_

The commander and captain didn't know what happened, but they figured it was bad. They knew Comet, and they knew he wouldn't just run away unless something really bad happened.

"Wolffe, I'm almost afraid to ask, but why did we find him sobbing and hands covered in blood?" Rex asked. The gruff commander went silent for a couple of seconds. "Wolf'ika... He said that the blood was Copper's."

 _"Copper killed himself. Comet was the first to reach him..."_ Wolffe trailed out at the end. The two younger clones looked at Comet sadly. 

"I'll take him with Torrent tonight. I don't think he and Tup are letting go of each other anytime soon."

_"Thank you vod'ika."_

"Anytime."

Cody ended the transmission and he and Rex walked back to the others.

"What's wrong?" Wooley asked quietly. Rex explained to Ghost and Torrent what Wolffe told them. They all looked to the ground, very sad. They looked to the two teenagers, Tup was still holding Comet, and the Wolfpack boy was not sobbing anymore but still crying. They could see how much it affected Comet.

"I think we should let Tup handle this. I say we send them back to the barrack and they can stay there." Fives suggested.

Tup was walking down the halls with Comet beside him, staring at his hands. Tup kept glancing at his friend, feeling a lot of emotions at one time. They reached the barracks without a word spoken. No one else was in the common room, which Tup found very convenient but he wasn't about to complain. 

He tentatively grabbed the other's right hand and lead him to the refresher. He took Comet's left hand as well and put them under the tap. Comet moved like he had just woken up from being sedated by a hypo.

But still, Tup didn't rush him. Once Comet finished he dried his hands. He looked to Tup, who was leaning against the wall and was felling astray from the world. Tup held out a hand as an invention, ready to go to the bunks. Comet shakily took his outstretched hand and followed. 

Tup sat on his respected bunk pulling Comet down with him. Comet moved close to Tup but still had space between them. Tup put one arm underneath his head, giving the other boy a gently smile.

But Comet didn't smile back, instead, he opened his mouth to speak, more tears gathering in his eyes. 

"I was right in front of him. And I _knew_ something was wrong. _Why_ , why didn't I stop him?" Comet asked brokenly. 

"You didn't want to expect the worst he could possibly do. It's not your fault." Tup said sincerely.

Comet soon fell into a fitful sleep, completely drained. Tup waited for him to fall asleep, thinking about multiple things. He felt crushed for him. It's one thing to lose your brother by his own hand, but it was another thing to be the last one to see him, and not stop him. 

He observed Comet, he looked more relaxed than he was about an hour ago. Progress.

Tup leaned forward and pressed a little kiss to the sleeping boy's head. As Tup fell asleep, he wondered if he meant it as a brotherly affection.

* * *

Comet and Tup have been doing some thinking. Privately of course. They were both questioning (not in a bad way) their friendship. They were both confused about what they were feeling. 

The first one to question it was Comet.

They were sparring together, in one of the very few times the 501st, 104th, and the 212th had training together.

Tup and a Wolfpack member, Sparrow, were on the mats. Tup was struggling on the floor, being stuck in a lock with the bigger clone standing above him. He went limp, easily.

Comet was confused about why he gave up so quickly. He looked to Hardcase who was leaning against the wall, looking for an explanation. Hardcase grinned and leaned closer and said, "Wait for it..."

As soon as Sparrow loosened his grip, Tup broke free, kicking Sparrow's feet out from underneath him. Sparrow hit the ground and Tup pinned him down on the floor.

"Holy shit! Who the _hell_ taught him that?" Wolffe announced. The whole 501st laughed, knowing that Tup did the maneuver most of the time. 

"No, I'm serious." Rex and Fives grinned at the commander.

"It was you two wasn't," Wolffe said, seeing their grins. Fives shook his head. "Nope, he started doing it on his own."

"He would definitely be Alpha's favorite," Rex said, knowing that Alpha-17 could be brash but he also had a heart, hard to believe right?

Sparrow sat up groaning, "Damn kid. That was good, not going to lie."

Tup chuckled, sticking a hand out. 

Tup didn't have to walk far to reach where Torrent and all the commanders were. He took out his very messy bun and shook his hair out. Comet noticed when he first met him his hair had been above his shoulders. Now it was passed his shoulders a small bit, and that was ten months ago.

Sparrow reached his batch mates who also not too far away. He turned back with a grin on his face, "You're an _osik'ika,_ you know that right?"

"He knows." almost all of the 501st and 212th said. Tup just gave him an innocent shrug and went back to putting up his hair. 

Comet smiled, the grin coming easily, but then it faltered by a minuscule. An epiphany smacked him in the face.

'Oh _fuck_. I love him...'

"Comet, what the _kriff_ is up? You have been pacing for twenty minutes. You're making me feel dizzy, and that shouldn't be possible." Ace complained, lounging on one of the couches in the common room. 

"Sorry." but Comet did not stop pacing. Wolffe, Boost, and Sinker watched on, becoming uneasy that Comet was acting this way.

Arks looked at him with calculating eyes. "Is it your ADHD?" 

Comet abruptly stopped, fidgeting with his hands. He pivoted towards Wolffe.

"Can I talk to you?" Wolffe stood up and followed Comet, momentarily shocked. 

They reached the barracks, Wolffe sat down on one of the bunks, with Comet sitting in front of him. Comet began to fidget again not looking Wolffe in the eyes. Wolffe waited patiently.

"So you know how people get crushes?" Comet opened with.

"Yes." Wolffe had a feeling he knew where this was going. 

"Well I have a crush, but it feels like it's more than that," Comet explained. Wolffe smiled softly, "So you think you love him?" Comet nodded, then swiftly looked up.

"Wait a minute, how'd you know it was a guy?" Comet said accusingly.

Wolffe went and sat beside him, "Kid, I've watched you grow into this battalion. I know you better than you think." Wolffe pulled the teenager towards him. Comet a surge of relief course through him. 

* * *

Tup started feeling a different way about Comet two weeks later. His revelation was more gradual. It wasn't like bang, 'I like him', it was more 'do I like him?'.

He was panicking, not the fact that he liked Comet, it was the fact that he had never really considered himself gay.

Fives noticed that Tup's breathing was sped up, but it wasn't a full-on panic attack. They have all gotten 'used' to his attacks, they didn't freak out when he had one anymore. Tup had also gained more control, so they weren't as explosive or long. He was lying with Rex, in his bunk, with Kix and Jesse in a similar position.

"Tup, take a breath kid." the ARC called out. Tup looked confused before he realized that he wasn't breathing the correct way. Once he calmed down, he flopped back onto the bunk.

"I hate emotions," he exclaimed, causing the others to be confused. Hardcase gave a confused chuckle, "What do you mean?" 

Tup went silent, thinking if he should tell them, or keep it to himself.

Hardcase waited for his answer but he got impatient.

"Is something wrong?"

"No it's just..." he trailed off. No one spoke, they were waiting for him to talk, so he didn't feel pressured.

"I'm gay." he finally whispered.

"Hey, that's fine. It's fine." Rex quickly reassured him.

"I just never thought I _would_ be. Or that I would like someone."

Jesse really wanted to ask the question that popped into his head but didn't want to embarrass his little brother.

"So who's the guy," Hardcase asked in a sing-song voice.

"Damn you," Jesse whispered, causing Kix to snort in amusement. Tup flushed, pulling the covers over his head, hiding from him. 

"Come on Tup'ika. No judgment." Echo said.

"...Comet." Tup mumbled. Jesse clapped his hands once, pointing at the trigger-happy clone in the next bunk.

 _"Karking_ called it!"

Tup ripped the covers away, looking at Jesse with his mouth hinged open, "Seriously Jess'?"

Jesse laughed then had a serious face on, "Seriously."

* * *

Tup and Comet were in Comet's bunk, just laying around, and just talking aimlessly. 

Comet was watching Tup talk with fondness in his eyes. Tup stopped talking when he saw that Comet was starring at him.

"What?"

Comet became a little afraid. He didn't know how he would react.

"Look, I'm going to be straight with you." he started. He took a breath and then dived into the deep end of the 'possible danger' pool.

"I like you. A lot."

He looked up, at saw that Tup had tears in his eyes. And they weren't happy tears.

"Why?" Tup stood up from the bunk, Comet following. Tup was backing away from him. He liked Comet, but he didn't understand why Comet liked him.

"What do you mean?" Comet asked, hands out, showing he wasn't going to hurt Tup.

"Comet, I am mentally fucked! I can barely go a day without worry about something stupid!" Tup yelled, and Comet felt his heart break for him.

"I'm not normal Comet! The sooner you understand that-" he was cut off by Comet pulling him towards his chest. 

"I don't care about that," he whispered. Tup stopped struggling after minutes ticked by and let his head rest against Comet's shoulder.

"I like you too."

Comet and Tup had managed to get Wolffe and Torrent. Fives and Rex were still working on their relationship, they had only got back together a week ago.

"So, Tup you tell them." Comet pushed Tup in front of him. Tup glared at him and pulled Comet with him. 

"Tell us what?" Echo asked. They both looked at each other, having a conversation without words. Tup looked at their brothers with a little head tilt. All of Torrent knew _that_ look, and it usually meant trouble. 

Tup went up on his toes and pressed a kiss to Comet's cheek. 

"Finally!" some of them yelled. The two teenagers laughed with them, Tup momentarily hid his face in Comet's shoulder.

Rex and Fives glared at Comet. Tup saw the two and rolled his eyes. "If you lecture him, I swear."

Rex's gaze softened, "Just take it slow you two."

Tup looked to Fives, "Say your piece."

Fives' burning gaze fell on Comet, "You hurt him? I hurt you."

Everyone settled down after that and both of them knew it was the start of a whole other adventure.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a looooong one. I really enjoyed writing this one though! Also this timeline is a little jumpy but when Tup and Comet get together, Rex and Fives have not broken up. So Tup is newly eighteen, just for clarification. For the other parts, you can kind of pick-and-choose where they fall. And if you saw any names you didn't recognize, I just made them up.  
> Also the AU is up if you want to check it out!
> 
> What do you think?


	13. Chapter 13- Sleep Paralysis

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Echo can't move when he wakes up one day.

Echo's insomnia had not stopped once in the past week. He had almost collapsed a week ago when he was with Tup. Fives and Kix had been trying and trying to get him to sleep but nothing would work. Echo was just getting more stressed by each passing day and the loss of sleep was not helping.

Echo was quietly pacing late at night, unable to sleep once again. He was running his fingers through his hair, trying to focus on something other than the fact that he couldn't sleep.

Kix heard someone moving around, as he was laying in Jesse's arms. At first he thought it was nothing, but then the sound was still happening. Kix slowly opened his eyes, looking around. He saw Echo pacing the floor, looking frustrated. Kix carefully got out of Jesse's hold on him, shushing him when he moved a little.

Kix cautiously placed a hand on the small of Echo's back. Echo jumped, he had not heard Kix get up.

"You want to go outside?" Echo nodded, allowing Kix to lead him outside of the barracks. Echo didn't stop pacing once they reached the living area. Kix let him, sitting on the couch.

He let him pace for ten minutes, before he stood up, gently grabbed his upper arm, and sat him down next to him.

"Alright, talk to me here."

Echo dropped his head in his hands, "Can't sleep. Insomnia is a bitch."

Kix hummed, rubbing a soothing hand across his back. 

"What would you like me to do? I don't want to keep knocking you out." Kix said. Echo sighed and leaned on his brother.

"I don't know," Echo responded. Kix knew he needed to sleep himself but his brother was more important. He laid down on the couch with Echo in his arms, not trying to make him fall asleep, just getting in a better position.

"We'll figure it out _vod'ika_."

* * *

They did not figure it out. Echo had been stuck in the same loop for two more weeks. The 501st was on a mission so no one really slept. Fives would be too on edge and go on watch. Kix would be helping the wounded. Hardcase would be too hyperactive. Tup sometimes jerked awake from a minor nightmare (or major, it depended) to never fall back into slumber from the rest of the night.

They were finally on their way home. Echo had not slept in two days, and he was exhausted. Everyone noticed that Echo was tired, and he was running out of steam. 

When they got barrack to their barracks, Echo immediately collapsed on his bed. He was sure he would sleep that night, his body just couldn't take it anymore.

Tup watch him lay on his bunk and he smiled sadly. He walked over to him, climbed the ladder, and gave him a quick hug. Echo smiled softly when he felt his arms surround him. Tup pressed a kiss on his shoulder, then went to his own bunk.

Echo heard shuffling and hushed voices in the morning. Echo tried to roll to get up, but he didn't move a centimeter. He tried to move again but he failed. Echo started panicking. He couldn't move, not even his finger. His body was just snapped in one position, and he couldn't call for one of the others.

After two minutes, which felt like an eternity. Echo flew down the ladder, looking at his hands, flexing them.

When he looked up from his hands, breathing heavily, his brothers were giving him weird and worried looks.

"Are you... o-okay?" Rex asked slowly. 

"I couldn't move. Why couldn't I move?" he asked Kix, almost becoming hysterical. 

"Your body was probably just not awake yet," Kix said calmly. Echo took a deep breath, slowing his heart-rate down. He attempted to convince himself that Kix was right, but he had a gut feeling that it was more than that.

"Come on, let's get you some scans. Just to make sure." Kix offered, and Echo nodded.

Fives and Rex shared a look. Rex knew the look Fives had on. It was sheer protectiveness. Rex had seen it multiple times before, sometimes even aimed at him. Rex gave nod, knowing Fives needed to be with him.

Fives quickly caught up with the pair and walked in silence.

Echo was laying on one of the medbay beds, just in his blacks. Fives was sitting to his left, leaning back in his chair.

Kix came back with a datapad in hand. 

"Well, your scans are fine. Technically there is nothing wrong with you, at least physically. I'm guessing it's all psychological."

Echo thought that was worse, there was no cure from something that was in your head. He groaned, covering his face with his hands. Fives ran a comforting hand through Echo's hair.

"I know I said I don't like to do this but I'll knock you out for tonight, then we'll figure this out."

Kix, Echo, and Fives headed back to the barracks. Echo and Kix climbed up the ladder to reach Echo's bunk. Echo bit the inside of his lip as Kix pulled out a hypo. Kix saw the look on the ARC's face and paused his movements. Kix gave him a sad smile and brought him closer.

"I'm going to help you Eyayah _._ That's what older brothers do."

Kix let Echo go then lined up the hypo with the connection point of his neck and shoulder. He gently pressed the plunger down, and ten seconds later Echo's eyes were fluttering. Kix pushed on his shoulder, making him lay down. He slowly climbed down after he was sure Echo was asleep.

He went to his shared bunk with Jesse, and his husband opened his arms when he got close. Kix climbed into bed, getting close to Jesse.

"So is he okay?" Jesse whispered, rubbing the medics' shoulder.

"I don't know," Kix answered.

Tup was pulled from his sleep from someone crying. Tup was the lightest sleeper, he heard the smallest sounds. He got up from his bunk and moved toward Fives and Echo's bunks, where the crying was coming from. 

Echo was sitting in his bed, with his head on his knees, sobbing. Tup wanted to _smack_ Fives for not hearing his brother crying.

"Echo. Echo." Tup tried to get his attention, Echo just shook his head, still crying.

Tup quickly moved to Rex's bunk, who was sleeping alone, without Fives (they were still working on somethings). The youngest jostled the captain awake. Rex looked at him annoyed but awake.

"It's Echo." Rex soon became aware of his crying ARC.

Rex told Tup to go back to bed, but he was aware that was almost impossible for Tup.

Rex approached his younger brother. Echo looked up from his knees, golden eyes filled with tears. 

Echo then launched himself at his older brother. Rex had to take a few steps back to catch himself. He held Echo close to his chest, not asking questions. He knew Echo just needed some comfort because of something that happened.

"I couldn't move. I couldn't move for five minutes." Echo said through tears. Rex saw movement in the corner of his eyes, and he guessed it was Kix or Jesse.

"Did anything else happen?" Rex asked.

"I started seeing things. I-I don't know what or who it was but it was terrifying."

Kix had a calculating look on his face like he was trying to solve a murder. But then his face fell, and he smacked his forehead with his hand.

"What?" Tup spoke, seeing Kix make the gesture.

"I'm an idiot. Sleep paralysis, that would explain why you couldn't move Echo."

Fives sat up looking concerned for his 'twin', "Is that bad?" Kix shook his head, he had seen multiple clones and even Jedi have it. It's common when clones and Jedi alike didn't have sleep schedules that were set in stone.

"No, you can't be harmed from it. It's just scary because it can cause hallucinations."

Echo calmed down enough to stop crying, but he didn't move away from Rex. Rex and Kix agreed Echo would sleep with Rex. It was apparent that the ARC wasn't going to let go.

Rex and Echo got situated on the bunk, and Kix gave Echo another hypo, but with a much lower dosage.

"I'll keep giving him hypos, but lower the dosage every time. We don't need him to get dependent on this."

To Echo's surprise, the next night, he slept through the whole night. Yes, he did have the hypo but it was still progress.

"Yay, now you aren't going to be miserable anymore." Boil said the same day at the range with Torrent. He and a few others chuckled.

Echo aimed his blaster and started firing at the target. All the rounds he shot were killing shots. The chuckling stopped. Echo admired his work, then leaned against the wall. He gave a smile to Boil.

"You were saying?" 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this took so long. I originally was working on the next AU chapter but then I needed to take a break from that chapter. So the AU chapter will be up soon if you were wondering.
> 
> What do you think? Requests?


	14. Chapter 14- Cyare

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jess feels sick, and Kix isn't there.

"Love, I have a twenty-hour shift in the morning. I won't be back for a while." Kix said to Jesse as everyone in Torrent was climbing into their bunks. Jesse gave a whine, curling into Kix's body, burying his face in his shoulder.

"That's sooooo long," Jesse mumbled. Kix chuckled.

"Sorry _cyar'ika,_ but I can't do anything about it." 

Jesse continued to grumble under his breath for multiple minutes. He didn't like to be away from his husband for that long, but orders were orders. 

Hardcase groaned in annoyance, shoving his face in his pillow.

"Hey Jess'?" he called to his brother, "Put a blaster in it."

Jesse piped down, discovering that Hardcase was right (not that he would admit it) and he was very tired. He let Kix place his head on his chest. They laid in silence, soaking up the limited time they had together, knowing they wouldn't see much of each other the next day. Kix placed one of his legs in between Jesse's, nuzzling closer towards him. Jesse smiled gently at him, his hand gravitating to the medic's shoulder blades.

Kix watched Tup lay down in his bunk, curling up on his side. Fives hesitated on the other side of the room. Kix knew why. He wanted to sleep with Rex and Rex probably wanted the same. 

"Come on Fives, go," Kix whispered oh so quietly, catching Jesse's attention. They watched as Fives gave a light shake of his head, aimed at himself, and go to his own bunk. 

"Damn it, I thought they had it," Kix whispered, resting against Jesse's form once again.

"They'll come around. They _do_ love each other." Jesse mused. "I'll see you in the morning, love," Jesse told Kix in a hushed voice, pressing a kiss to his temple.

* * *

Kix awoke in the morning, still wrapped in Jesse's arms. Kix smiled guiltily down at him, before shifting to sit up. Arms tightened around him, forcing him to be still.

"I have to leave, love." Kix chuckled quietly.

Jesse shook his head playfully but reluctantly let him go. Kix left the barracks quickly and quietly, everyone remained asleep.

Jesse tried to fall back asleep but he was starting to feel a little weird. His stomach was slightly flipping, but it was nothing major. He brushed it off.

He went in and out of sleep, waking up sometimes to Hardcase's snoring. Tup was the first one to wake up, besides Jesse. He blinked his eyes, as the room came into focus. Once he became aware that he was in fact awake he let out a whine.

"It's too early for this," he complained.

"Well, I don't know what to tell you _Tup'ika_ , you did accept Rex's offer to be with the crazy troopers of the 501st." Jesse teased. Tup glared with no heat at him and retreated under his sheets. 

Eventually, everyone woke up, dreading early morning training. All the battalions switched training times, so there wasn't really a schedule they had every single day. They kind of just had an outline of sorts. But Tup did not like earl morning training, he was _not_ a morning person. He continued to hide under the sheets, ignoring the world.

"Tup don't make me get the water." Rex threatened, taking a step towards the 'fresher. Tup leveled him a stare, calculating the odds that Rex would actually dump water on him. Rex gave him a 'try me bitch' look, stepping in the doorway of the 'fresher. Tup jumped up, now wide awake, not about to doubt his older brother's abilities. 

"That's what I thought. Great choice kiddo."

* * *

Their three-hour training session had ended, and most of them were ravenous. The 501st and the 212th entered the mess hall. They all gathered their food and did it in a surprisingly calm manner. The two battalions split, going to different tables. Everyone settled down, digging into their food. Jesse took a couple of bites of food and immediately felt his stomach turn inside of him. He felt the food rise back up his throat. He swallowed harshly, forcing the bile back down.

Hardcase gave him a side glance, one eyebrow raised, "You okay there?" 

Jesse didn't trust himself to speak without spewing his guts so he settled for a nod. He had rarely got sick, in a long term sense. But with war, soldiers can see some twisted things. Sometimes literally. There had been times where he and many other of his brothers had thrown up. Even Wolffe, the stoical commander, has lost his bearings at least once. This felt different to Jesse though, this wasn't his nerves or guilt, he just felt pain sick.

But there was not a snowball's chance in hell that he would bring attention. At least not until Kix came back. So he would have to wait... twelve hours. Fun.

Jesse tried to eat some more, knowing the consequences of _that_ situation. Once everyone finished their food, they went back to the barracks, ready to enjoy their time without responsibilities for the rest of the day. Jesse laid on his bunk on his side, trying not to jostle his stomach.

Rex and Fives were talking in hushed tones. Hardcase was messing with something in his hands. Echo was catching up on sleep. And Tup talking softly to Comet on his comm.

'Come on Jesse just a couple more hours. You can do it.' he told himself at the fifteen-hour mark. 'Five more to go.'

Hardcase kept throwing him glances, keeping a close eye on him.

Suddenly a huge wave of nausea slammed him in the gut. He gave a soft gag, leaning over the side of the bed. A thick stream of saliva came out of his mouth. He let out another soft gag.

Everyone quickly moved around. Tup moved to Jesse's side, hauling him up. Fives place a bin in front of him. Everyone just stayed out of the way. Jesse clenched his eyes closed, taking a deep breath. Tup gently rubbed his shoulder, trying to comfort him.

"Okay, okay, you're fine. You're fine. What do we do?!" Hardcase panicked. Echo leveled him with a mind-boggling look.

"Hardcase shut the eff up already. Not. Helping." 

Rex crouched before him, "Do you want me to call Kix?"

Jesse shook his head after a moment of thought. He didn't want to pull Kix away from the medbay.

Rex nodded, knowing that h would take that back sooner or later.

"Let me know if you change your mind."

Jesse tried to fall asleep after nausea passed, but nothing worked. He spun up on the bunk, letting a soft cry escaped his lips. 

Tup being the lightest sleeper, automatically woke up to the sound. He saw Jesse sitting on the bunks, quietly crying. Tup quickly ran to Rex's side, waking him up. Tup pointed to Jesse, eyes full of sadness. Rex nodded, reaching for his comm, just in case. He walked to his younger brother, sitting on the bunk.

"Kix," Jesse whispered. Rex nodded predicting what he was going to say. He put a hand on his shoulder, putting in the frequency.

_"Kix"_

"Jesse's sick. He wants you."

A moment went by, as Kix was talking to someone, most likely Helix or Arks (or maybe even both).

_"I'll be there in a couple of minutes."_

Ten minutes went by before Kix walked through the doors. He completely ignored everyone else and went to Jesse's form. They didn't take it personally, all they did was walk out of the barracks going to the rec room.

Kix saw that Jesse was holding back, obviously not wanting to throw up. Kix moved so that he was straddling Jesse from behind, wrapping his arms loosely around Jesse's middle.

"Love, you'll feel better." Kix soothed, stroking his back. Jesse's stomach contracted so violently that he had no choice but to lean over the bin. He painfully retched, bile shooting out of his mouth. Tears slipped out of his eyes, the acid burning his throat.

"It's okay _cyar'ika_. I'm right here." Kix whispered, laying his head on Jesse's shoulder.

Jesse went through the same experience four more times, and his stomach mercifully gave him a break and he stopped throwing up. He leaned heavily against Kix's chest, worn out from his ordeal. Kix shifted him so they were both laying down, but their normal positions were changed. Jesse was the one on Kix's chest, with his husband stroking a hand down his arm.

"Jess', you haven't been sick in a while huh," Kix pointed out, smiling down at him. Jesse gave a small nod, "And it still sucks the same amount as last time." Kix let out a chuckle, slightly amused at Jesse's pain.

"I'm sorry that I wasn't here." Kix apologized after a couple of minutes of silence. Jesse lifted himself up slowly and shot a glare at him.

"Kix, they need you in the medbay, you're a medic. It's your job. And plus, you're hot when you take care of people." He finished with a smile, pressing a kiss to Kix's cheek.

"Yeah, yeah, I love you too sickie."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finished! I just love making characters suffer. Do you guys have any Tup/Comet requests? There has been a lack of time together with those two.
> 
> Also important side note: I pulled a muscle in my shoulder and I am in constant pain so the next chapter may take me a while to type up.


	15. Chapter 15- In the Name of Love

It was always Rex _and_ Fives. They were one of the most known couples in the GAR. Most of the Generals also knew about them, and they knew about most of the relationships between their men. But now they didn't really know what they were. They broke up, but then they realized it wasn't the right decision after Rex comforted Fives during a breakdown. They tried their hardest.

They knew in their hearts, they would never be the same. They didn't hug each other anymore, steal concerned glances, didn't sleep in the same bed. It's like they were trying to do the impossible. They had been doing this for three weeks. Kix and Jesse could relate to them, relationships could be very hard. And they just weren't happy as individual people. 

"Babe, you okay?" Comet startled Tup from his thoughts. Tup's eye's snapped up to meet the very similar eyes of his boyfriend.

"Just thinking..."

Comet knew better than to leave Tup alone to his thoughts. Tup would start to overthink things, which could easily trigger a panic attack. He gave the younger boy a scrutinizing gaze. Tup sighed, knowing the other teen wouldn't let it go. He flopped down on the bed with Comet following. Tup stared at the ceiling, while Comet kept his eyes on Tup.

”About a week before we got together, Fives came into the barracks one night crying. He gave Echo a look and it was like Echo knew something we didn’t. Fives calmed down but didn’t say anything. And I figured that Echo would comm Rex, but he never came into the barracks. Until I called Kix when Fives started panicking about something.”

Comet was slightly confused he didn’t really see a problem with that situation. “What’s so bad about that?”

Tup finally looked at Comet then moved closer so they were both facing each other. He shrugged, “They just never seemed _right_ after. They don’t sleep in the same bunk anymore, they barely have any interaction unless we’re in a battle, and they just seem unhappy.”

Comet understood what he was saying, he had a couple in his battalion that had fought a few times before. He understood the fear of them breaking up, it hurt to just think about it.

"Your afraid of them ending things, aren't you," Comet stated quietly. Tup's answer was to lay his head on Comet's broad chest. Comet kept an arm under his head and draped the other on the curve of his side. He drew random shapes on the small of his boyfriend's back, letting him deal with his feeling privately. The shape drawing also helped Comet keep his ADHD in check. 

After a few minutes, Tup let out a scoff. Comet flicked his eyes down, curious about why Tup gave that reaction when nothing had previously happened.

"My fucking anxiety is pissing me off right now. I am so overthinking-" Tup was cut off by Comet giving a warning tap on his back to get him to stop talking.

"Tup, there is nothing wrong with being afraid, that the two people who have become parents to you, may be having some problems. It shows you have a heart in this war. Do you understand me?"

Tup nodded, not looking at his lover, but wrapped his arms around the Wolfpack boy's stomach. Comet chuckled, Tup always found a reason to latch onto anyone in the room.

"I'm sure they're okay babe. Just give them some time."

Rex and Fives were the only ones in the barracks. And they weren't having a pleasant conversation.

 _"Fives! What's not clicking in your fucking head,"_ Rex screamed in Mando'a. They were very close to each other, but not making any physical moves.

_"Since when do you fucking care, Rex! Huh?! You've never cared!"_

_"What gives you the right to say I don't care about you?! How do you think Tup would feel if you were laying dead in front of him because that's how I would feel!"_

Fives scoffed in disbelief and decided that basic was better to have this conversation. "He's had enough practice already. And don't fucking bring him into this."

Rex looked appalled at Fives, and what had just left his mouth, "How could you say that?!"

Fives ran an agitated hand through his hair turning in a slow circle, "You know what I mean! And I told you not to bring him into this!"

"Well too bad! Do you not care about him anymore is that what this is?"

"You know that's not fucking true!"

"Really? Because it didn't seem like it when you slammed him, against, the _fucking_ , _wall,_ Fives!" Rex hit a nerve right there. They were so busy yelling at each other, they didn't hear the faint sound of the rec room doors opening. They continued to argue about Tup, not having a care in the world about who was outside the door.

"Fuck you, Rex! You know what, this is exactly why we broke up in the first place. We keep fucking bring Tup into this shit so-," Fives stopped midway, turning to the barrack doors. They saw their kid standing in the doorway, completely frozen. They met each other's gaze both at a loss of what to do.

"Tup listen-" Fives tried to walk towards him keeping his voice soft.

"No! Just... just don't." Tup said with a mix of emotions layered in his voice, swiftly walked away from both of them.

* * *

Tup wandered away from their barracks. he was planning to go find the members of Ghost but they found him first.

”Hey kid. Where’s the rest of Torrent?” Wooley asked, with a confused smile, it was later in the day which meant that Torrent was usually together. Waxer and Boil turned to look at each other, panic in their eyes. They had walked past Torrent's barrack doors with Cody a little while ago and overheard a yelling match happening between Rex and Fives.

"Tup? What's wrong?" Cody asked, spotting the younger clone's defeated posture. The rest of Ghost stopped, faces falling. Tup pursed his lips unable to speak. He looked up with his eyes only, a single tear making its way down his face. He wiped it away quickly.

"Oh _osik_. Did you hear..." Waxer cursed, praying that he was wrong, but his heart shattered when Tup nodded. Cody's eyes became stern and cold but he still allowed Tup to cling onto him. He cupped the back of his head, giving him a tight squeeze. They took him back to their barracks, settling him on the couch. Tup curled into a ball with his knees to his chest.

"When did they break up?"

Everyone stiffened when Tup asked that question. He took notice of their posture, seeing them go ridged. Cody sighed, shifting his arms to rest on his knees, "The night Fives had the breakdown."

Tup processed the new information, placing his head on his knees.

"Tup'ika how much did you hear? Of them arguing," Helix asked gently, planning ahead if he had a panic attack. Tup shook his head, tears coming down his tan skin. They all gave him pitiful glances. Waxer sat next to him and put a warm hand on Tup's shin.

"Please tell us. We want to help you understand."

"It was about me..." Tup was startled when Cody gave a low growl in his voice. "Fives said 'this is exactly why we broke up in the first place. We keep fucking bring Tup into this shit'. Did they really break up because of me?" 

Waxer tugged the boy closer to him, stroking his hair, which was surprisingly down. "They have different viewpoints on things sometimes. And we aren't going to lie but some of the viewpoints were on you."

Tup sat up straighter, looking slightly horrified, "Oh gods I did this. If I never went into Torrent this wouldn't have happened."

Cody stood up, "Tup I'm stopping you right there. This is not your fault. They love you. We love you. This isn't, your fault. And now if you excuse me, I have some necks to metaphorically wring."

"Cody what's so important that you had called us to your barracks" Pond asked tiredly, wanting to be done with the day. The other two commanders nodded in agreement. Cody had a mad look across his face.

"Look in there," Cody pointed to the rec room behind him. They peered in, seeing tear tracks on Tup's face as Waxer and Boil hugged him from both sides. He broke down into a round of cries and Helix spoke to him in a hushed tone.

"What happened," Bly asked quietly. Cody gave him a bored gaze.

"Take a guess Bly, not much can make that kid cry..."

The commanders went into deep thought, think of all the possibilities of why the youngest of all of them was having a breakdown. Wolffe's golden and white eye widened in realization. Then they became as cold as Cody's.

"Oh please let me kill them," Wolffe had become to get close to Tup ever since he and the pup of the Wolfpack started dating. He had head about Tup overhearing them arguing for a few seconds from Comet. He wanted to smack both the ARC and the Captain. Cody briefed the others on what happened. 

Cody pulled out his comm and barked into it, "Both of you get your _shebs_ to my barracks. _Now._ "

They waited around for the two of them to arrive, all of them fuming. The glared at the both of them when the walked towards them. Cody roughly pulled both of them closer to the door and showed them the same scene the others saw; Tup crying and the others comforting him.

"Do you want to explain what the _hell_ this is about?" 

Neither of them responded or looked up from the ground. Pond roughly pulled Rex's chin up to look him in the eye, "That's your _karking_ kid in there. You both did this. What gives you the right to make that kid cry?"

Wolffe jumped in, "Did you not think you two fighting wouldn't push him away?" 

Bly just glared at them, at a loss for words. But he soon found them, "He's in there, thinking that if he never came to Torrent, that this wouldn't have happened."

The Rex and Fives took the heat of their older brothers. Rex was used to being reprimanded by them, it's what happens when you have protective older brothers in a war. Fives just took it because he knew he deserved it. The others took calming breaths, trying their damn hardest to not flip out completely.

"He is one of the only teenagers," Cody started but then let Ponds take over.

"Scratch that shit, he's the only _child_ in the entire army," and Ponds was right, the Jedi managed to negotiate with the Kaminoans to push the release of clones to late eighteen to nineteen, instead of late sixteen. Tup was the last child transferred off of Kamino, the others were either dead or inactive (ex: his batch mates).

"But he's not our child, he's _yours_. We love him, we really do. He's a good kid. But don't think for a second that we are going to let him think he shouldn't be where is right now," Cody stated bluntly and truthfully.

"And you two. The ones who care the most about him. And the ones _he_ loves the most," Wolffe stared at both of them. They cowered under the gaze, scared of how Wolffe was going to end that sentence.

"Fucking. Broke him." 

Bly pushed himself off the wall he was leaning on, "Just go somewhere else and talk. And fix the mess you made."

* * *

Rex looked at Fives. Fives looked at Rex. They were in their barracks, sitting on what was their shared bunk, legs out in front of them, Rex's legs on top of Fives'. Both of them were crying silent tears. 

"Where did we go wrong," Five whispered tearfully. Rex shook his head the smallest bit, not knowing the answer. He opened his palm on the bed, inviting Fives to grab it. He did grab it, squeezing it softly.

"I don't know Fives. I really don't. But I do know one thing."

Fives' golden, broken eyes shot up to show Rex he was listening.

"I _love_ you. I want to spend the rest of our lives together. But I don't want to be with you if you're unhappy. I'll only cause you more pain that way." Rex explained, clutching Fives' hand.

"I love you too. I want to stay with you, but I don't... know how." Fives said softly. Rex shot him a sad look, and put a finger under his chin, gently lifting his head up.

Both of them leaned in, gently pressing their lips together. They didn't move until Fives began to quietly sob into the kiss. His shoulders shook with suppressed sobs and rested his head on Rex collarbone. Rex places a hand on the back of the ARC's neck, fighting back sobs of his own, "I know, I know. We'll fix this."

They broke apart when the door slide open. Tup came into their view, leaning on the doorway. He had a guarded look in his eyes, and arms crossed over his chest. They waited for him to talk.

"Why didn't you tell me," Tup finally asked. Fives beckoned him towards them. Tup hesitated before walking the floor. He sat on Fives' old bunk which was next to Rex's.

"We didn't want to worry you about being a problem, which you aren't," Rex hastily added.

"But we also didn't want to bring you into it, but it's safe to say we failed on that part," Fives said sheepishly. Tup looked down at his feet, processing even _more_ information. He was so worried before and he still was. He climbed onto the bunk with them, allowing himself to be hugged. Tup rested his body against Fives' well-built chest as Rex wrapped his strong arms around his middle.

"We're sorry you had to deal with all of this, love. It was never our intention to have you hear or see us arguing." Rex whispered into Tup's hair. Tup moved even closer to Fives, and whispered back, "It's okay, I still love you both."

Fives and Rex looked to each other, knowing that their kid was something special and that they would do anything in the name of love for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am really, really proud of this one, I don't exactly know why but I am! I wrote the commanders very rough-like with Rex and Fives, so they may seem a little OOC, expect maybe Wolffe, but I thought it fit the scene. 
> 
> What do you think? Requests?


	16. Chapter 16- Firsts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Comet's ADHD starts kicking in and Tup offers to help. What does Comet have in mind?

Comet paced the floor in front of Tup's bunk, ADHD kicking in. Tup laid on his side reading something on a datapad, very well aware of his boyfriend's, of a month, fidgety actions. Tup was very amused at Comet's suffering, knowing that his ADHD could be a bitch. Comet would shoot a heatless glare at the teen that was laying down if he cracked a smile or small chuckle. Eventually, Comet started snapping his fingers. He only snapped his fingers when his disorder was reaching its wits end.

"Com', is there something wrong," Tup asked sweetly with a teasing smile. Comet gave him the finger, causing Tup to laugh out loud. Tup shook his head and went back to his reading. Comet could not stop pacing.

"Seriously babe, what do you want to do?"

Comet thought for a moment before looking up with an unreadable grin, but it spelled trouble. Tup held up a finger to silence him.

"Before you say it, does it involve; A lying to the Generals or B lying to Wolffe, Rex, and Fives?" Comet gave a cute little shake of his head, pulling him up and dragging him to the door. Tup sighed heavily, too tired to deal with Comet being secretive. He pulled on Comet's arm to get him to stop. 

"And what makes you think I'm going with you?" Tup asked slyly. Comet didn't lose his confidence, gave a flirtatious smile, and reached for Tup's right hand. Tup looked at him expectantly, knowing his boyfriend had a flare for dramatics. 

"Well, you trust me enough to know you'll enjoy it sooner or later," he answered cryptically, with a smirk. Tup decided to play along, leaning closer.

"And what would that be?"

"Let's see if you can hold your own on the mats, against your boyfriend."

Tup gave a noise of disagreement, "Really? Do you think you can pin me down _that_ easily? Have you forgotten who raised me?"

Comet laughed out loud, "Trust me, I remember how good Torrent raised. But do you want to put it to the test?" Comet's pleading grin reappeared on his face. Tup cursed under his breath.

"Damn you and that smile of yours. Alright, let's go."

* * *

They entered one of the empty training rooms, grinning to each other. They squared up, facing each other. Both smirking, walking in a slow circle. 

"After you Wolf Boy," Tup invited, tilting his head to the side with a cocky grin. Comet rolled his eyes at the name but quickly shot forward. He blocked a punch Tup threw at him. They threw punched back and forth, not really moving from their original positions. Tup smiled when he landed a punch on Comet's side.

"Comet, I mean you're a good sharpshooter, but surely there's something you could do that's special," Tup said turning in a one-eighty to land a blow with one of Comet's arms in the air. Comet paused his motions momentarily.

"You mean other than kick your ass? I've got a few tricks up my sleeve that will make you _drop._ "

They kept throwing semi-lazy punches, not really sparring. At least not yet. They stopped when they heard the door open. They watched as Ghost, the Wolfpack, _and_ Torrent came into the room. 

Tup smiled, and without breaking eye contact with Fives whispered, "So. Should we piss Wolffe, Fives, and Rex off?"

Comet knew exactly what he was talking about. All three of them were not a fan of them getting in each other's personal space unless they were hugging. Comet swung a leg out, hitting Tup's backside, forcing him to take a step forward. Ghost company 'oooooo'ed as Tup slowly turned to face his boyfriend.

"I _know_ , you did not, literally kick my ass."

Comet just shrugged teasingly.

"That's it. You're dead," Tup lunged towards him, tackling him to the ground. Comet pinned him to the ground, grinning devilishly. They were so close they could feel each other's breath.

"Personal bubble in evasion you two," Wolffe called out to them. Both turned to him.

"What, you mean this Wolffe?" 

Comet put a seductive hand on the side Tup's neck, purposefully leaning very close to the point where their lips were centimeters apart. He expected Tup to stop him because he didn't think they were just ready for the step yet. Tup pushed Comet up and over him. Everyone watched the two teenagers dance across the floor, blocking, punching, and kicking.

Comet thought he had Tup in an impossible hold. Tup sighed in 'defeat', going lax. Comet grinned in premature victory. Tup kicked his leg's out, and Comet slammed into the mats. Boil snorted, hiding his face in Waxer's shoulder to stop himself from bursting out laughing.

"You guys don't have to babysit us ya know."

Cody laughed and grabbed Rex's arm, "Come on Rex'ika, leave them alone for once."

Tup and Comet gave him a thank you and continued fighting.

They were definitely getting really close to each other, but they didn't care. They would get chest-to-chest, knowing exactly what they were doing.

"You sure about your previous statement? Because I'm not my on my knees yet," Tup said periodically one time.

They would throw flirty remarks at each other, knowing it was their only chance because of their, sometimes, over-protective brothers. Tup and Comet loved them, but sometimes they could be overbearing and could hover a lot. Tup had Comet in a hold where his wrist was in a painful angle. He was in the perfect position to ask him any question and get an answer, he had broken other brother's bones while sparring.

"So I saw you checking out the new transfer in Bly's company. Do you think he's cute," Tup asked shamelessly, pushing Comet's wrist down even more. Comet's head snapped up to look him in the eye, eye's holding pity.

"Awww babe! You should have told me you felt jealous." Tup smack him upside the head. Comet chuckled as he got out of the hold. Tup yelped as he was knocked off his feet. He pouted as Comet held a hand out in front of him.

"Don't worry, you're the only one I will truly love," Comet said in a romantic tone.

Tup and Comet had been fighting for hours. They would take breaks but they were getting tired. Tup had Comet pinned down in front of him, legs straddling Comet's hips with said boy's back on the ground, both breathing heavily. Comet tapped out, too tired to continue and Tup was equally as tired. Tup gave a small sigh with a grin. He untied his bun, hair falling to his shoulders, curling at the bottom.

They both surveyed each other. Tup honey tinted eye's flicked away from Comet's, falling to his lips, then back up again. Tup averted his gaze shaking his head slightly, feeling as though he stepped out of bounds. Comet frowned, putting a hand under his chin. Amber eyes met light brown eyes. Comet framed Tup's face with his hands, pushing a lock of hair behind his ear. Tup put a gentle hand on Comet's chest, feeling his heartbeat start to increase. 

Tup could feel his own heart rapidly beating in his rib cage. He stared into Comet's eyes. They both slowly leaned in, Comet's shoulders coming off the floor. Their lips connected, both soft and warm. Comet's worn hands traveled through Tup's soft hair. They pulled back, panting slightly. Tup connected their lips again, moving his other hand to the back of the older boy's neck. Comet slid a hand down to Tup's waist, resting it there.

They only pulled part because they remembered they need oxygen to live. Both breathing heavily, they smiled before Tup got off his knees and laid directly on top Comet, head resting on his rib cage. The older of the two slowly stroked the younger's back. After two minutes, Tup put one hand on top of the other on Comet's chest, resting his chin on them. Comet used a finger to brush the baby hairs away from his face.

"I love you."

Comet did a double-take. Had he heard Tup correctly? Or was it him just imagining things? They had never said those three words with _real_ meaning behind it.

Tup's brain caught up with his mouth, and hide his face in his hands. Comet chuckled silently, pulling Tup hands away. He smiled kindly at him, adoration clear in his eyes.

"I love you too, Tup."

They were interrupted by multiple people coming into the room.

"Aww the love birds just kissed didn't they," a familiar called out. Both of the boys on the floor groaned and Tup dropped his head to Comet's chest.

"Well of course they did Hardcase, it's about freaking time!"

Tup hesitantly looked to Fives and Rex, who were standing with there arms crossed and almost mirrored each other's unreadable expression. Rex and Fives glanced at each other, communicating through expressions. Their stern looks softened, and it's like they were saying to their youngest, "It's fine."

Wolffe was smiling as they stood up, taking the hands of each other. Fives stopped Comet before all of them left the room.

"Just remember what I said before. You hurt him, I hurt you."

Comet smiled despite the threat. He looked to Tup, eye's soft, "Trust me, I'm not going to hurt him." 

Tup leaned closer, feeling at peace. The two teenagers, Torrent, Ghost, and the Wolfpack left the training, ready to do something else.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhhhhhh, we love first kisses in this household! Short but sweet. I didn't want to drag this on because I felt like it would have ruined the flow, let me know if you thought it was too short.  
> Also, what did you think the story was going to be based on the summary/title. Ya filthy animals! 
> 
> What do you think? Requests?


	17. Chapter 17- When Ghost Played Big Brother

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tup is in an explosion. Again. And he has to stay with Ghost while the 501st is away

Kix ran his final scan of Tup. Tup sat on the bed, brain far away. Kix waited for the scan to come back. He kept giving side glances to the quiet boy in front of him. His silence wasn't what was bothering him, it was that Tup was complete lax, devoid of emotion. He understood though, it isn't easy to lose another brother in the same way you lost your batch mates. Kix turned to the datapad when it beeped, completing the scan.

"Nothing too bad. Just a concussion, and a fractured arm. I might put you in a brace unless you prefer not to," Kix waited for a response that he knew he wasn't going to get.

"Tup," the medic prompted. Tup's eye's flickered up. "I'm putting you in a brace, okay?"

Tup nodded, then put his gaze back down. He saw Kix walk away. And he was left to his own mind. Lovely. Kix came back with a brace in hand, walking with Helix, and were talking about medical stuff. Kix and Helix ended there conversation. The 501st medic took in Tup's frame, which read complete and utter defeat.

He sighed, holding out a hand. Tup placed his right wrist in Kix awaiting hand, showing no trace of pain in his expression. Kix slipped the brace on his wrist, angling it to be in the correct place. The brace took up a little less than half of his forearm and covered his first row of knuckles. Kix watched Tup as his twisted the dial which tightened the plastic-covered wires on the outside of the brace. He stopped twisting when Tup nodded.

"Turn it to the right to tighten it. Pull the tab to release it," Kix explained quickly, understanding that Tup wanted as little interaction as possible. Tup nodded, still not using his speech. 

"Go back to the barracks, but no sleeping. You're allowed to sleep tonight."

Tup entered the common room, not meeting anyone's eye. They all looked to each other, concerned by Tup's quietness. They watched as he entered the bunk room.

"What the _kriff_ is up with him," Hardcase asked when Tup was no longer in the room. 

"And what the hell happened to his wrist," Echo chimed in. Fives sat down on the couch running a tired hand down his face. He had been nearby when the explosion went off, and Tup and a few others were in the dead center of it.

"You know that explosion that went off, the only one in the entire battle?"

Hardcase nodded, dreading where this was going. Explosions and Tup didn't mix.

"Well, I was near the area and one of the sergeants yelled to run. Tup was one of the first to follow the order, and he was just barely outside of the blast radius but he still got thrown a couple of feet. That's why he's in a brace I guess," Fives recited. Hardcase shrugged a little, "That's not too bad."

"But."

" _Osik."_

"Multiple other clones weren't so lucky. One of them was thrown and landed next to Tup... with his neck broken."

Hardcase took a sharp intake of breath, and Jesse pursed his lips. Jesse spoke hesitantly, "Just like Finn..."

Fives and Rex nodded, feeling sad for Tup having to relive that.

"Us and Kix think it triggered something. So that's why he isn't talking. And he probably won't talk until he has an anxiety attack. So it's a lose-lose situation," Rex threw his hands up for emphases. Echo turned to stare at the doors leading to their room. 

"We all know we're going to get sent out soon, so is he going with us?"

"I guess if and when we get sent out he'll go with either the Wolfpack or Ghost," Fives said with a shrug. 

Tup opened his eyes when the door to Torrent's room opened and he closed his eyes. He heard footsteps walk towards him and stop once they reached the bunk that he was curled up in. They softly sat down on the bed, not saying a word. They placed a light hand on Tup's shoulder, slowly pushing him to lay on his other side. 

Tup opened his eyes once more, honey eyes falling on the person sitting on his bed.

"Hey love," Comet greeted with a sad smile, "Rex told me that the mission didn't go so well."

Tup nodded, and opened his arms, indicating that he wanted to be held. Comet chuckled but still hugged Tup close to his chest. He rocked slightly, talking softly in his ear. He went on about random things, just keeping Tup occupied until his comm went off.

" _Buir,_ are we being deployed again?"

The voice of general Plo came through the comm, _"Yes my son. I know it's not ideal but we must leave as soon as possible. Wolffe, Boost, and Sinker will be waiting for you in the hanger."_

"Understood."

Comet tucked the comm back in his belt and looked to Tup. He stroked his cheekbone in a soothing motion, causing Tup to lean into the touch. He didn't leave just yet, he told himself that Wolffe can back the _kriff_ off for a few minutes.

"Babe," Comet started, "I know you're upset and don't want to talk. And I have no right to tell you that you can't. But just keep holding on okay?"

Tup looked at him, surprised. 

"Promise me. That you won't do anything that you'll regret."

Tup then understood what Comet meant. Comet was scared that Tup would hurt himself, just like Copper did. Tup launched himself towards Comet, hugging him tightly. He did his best to convey words into actions. 

They were interrupted by Rex popping his head in the room. "Hey Comet, Wolffe said 'tell the kid to get his _shebs_ to the hanger or he'll regret going against my order."

Comet groaned and Rex held his hands up in defense, "Hey, his words not mine."

Comet and Tup parted ways, leaving Tup alone with Rex. Rex stood in the doorway, waiting to see if Tup would talk. But as he guessed, Tup stayed mute. Rex pushed off the wall and took a few steps closer to the teen sitting on the bed.

"Do you want to talk about," Tup shook his head.

"Do you want me to leave you alone?"

Tup thought for a moment before shaking his head again. Rex smiled and walked towards the bed. He laid down and Tup placed his head on his chest. He explained that if they had to leave, Tup could stay with Ghost, and Tup agreed. And low and behold, thirty minutes later Fives entered.

"I commed Cody also, he's outside with Helix."

Both the captain and trooper stood, following the ARC out. Rex went outside to talk to Cody and Helix, and Tup knew what he was doing. Rex was going to tell Cody that he had a trigger and will probably have a panic or anxiety attack.

"Tup, take a deep breath," Kix's voice broke through to him. He blindly obeyed, feeling the tightness in his chest, that he didn't even know it was there, loosen. After he took a few breaths he looked to Kix giving a very small smile as thanks.

Rex tapped the datapad, letting the door open. He saw Cody and Helix lightly talking.

"Thank you again, Codes. He would just go with the others, but I don't trust his mental state right now," he directed, and Cody, who raised his head with a smile. He then turned his attention towards Helix, "He's going to have an anxiety attack, no question about it."

Helix nodded thoughtfully, "Is he going to push us away when it happens?"

Rex sighed, "It depends, if it's minor he'll brush off, but if it's full-blown, he'll let you help him. So... good luck"

Tup was laying in a spare bunk in Ghost's bunk room, trying to fall asleep. But his anxiety was making him freak out, and his brain was making him seeing both explosions over... and over... and over again.

Helix was keeping a close eye on him all night along with Cody. The others were too but they let the other two be the mother hens. Helix's mind snapped to the present when he heard someone hyperventilating. He turned to Tup seeing him sitting on the side of the bunk. He stood to his feet and cautiously approached the younger clone.

"Tup, you're okay. You're not there anymore," Helix said in his calm medic voice. Waxer, Boil, Crys, and Wooley, watched on, not knowing what to do other than feel bad for him. Tup tried to calm down but tears began to well up with tears. The tears streamed down his face, and Tup broke down into quiet sobs. Everyone felt their hearts break. 

Helix made no ground for the past hour, but he _never_ lost his patience. Cody joined him on trying to get Tup to calm down enough to breathe. Boil place a comforting arm around Waxer's shoulder, seeing a concerned look on his face.

"How do they do this? How can they watch him go through this and do it again," Waxer asked hoarsely. Boil shook his head, "I don't know."

Helix took a few more steps forward and turned back to Cody when Tup didn't curl up in fear. Cody got even closer and closer. Sooner or later he was right in front of Tup. He crouched in front of the teenager, cursing his old body when his knees cracked. 

" _Tup'ika_ , it's just us. Open your eyes and see for yourself," Cody gently gripped his hand. Tup shook his head rapidly, scared if he opened his eyes Finn would be staring back at him. Helix sat on his left side, gripping his shoulder.

"Breathe in for four seconds," Helix said out of the blue. Cody knew what he was doing. Helix had used that method on him a couple of times when he had an anxiety attack.

Tup begrudging breathed in for four seconds.

"Hold it for eight or as long as you can."

Tup reached five seconds before he couldn't do it.

"Exhale for seven seconds."

Tup repeated this for minutes after minutes. When he finally opened his eyes, he was met with Cody's amber-gold eyes. 

"There you go. See? Just us, you're safe," Cody soothed him. Tup closed his eyes again, letting more tears fall. Cody sat on his other side, pulling him closer to his side. Tup buried his face in the side of the commander's ribs.

"I know, Tup, I know," Cody cooed in his ear.

Tup stopped crying sixteen minutes later, scrubbing a hand down his face. Helix gave him a quick once over with one glance.

"You okay for now?"

Tup nodded, the only thing he was feeling was exhaustion. Waxer stared at him. Tup cocked his head to the side in question.

"How do you deal with that," he asked incredulously. Tup debated his options; he could stay silent but he knew Waxer wouldn't leave him alone.

"I've had better control over it. Until now," he whispered, crossing his arms over his chest. Cody ran a hand down his spine. Boil had a weird look on his face.

"You okay Boil?"

"You know we love you right? We know Torrent is your and will always be your squad, but we still love you, okay?

Tup let a genuine smile slide on his face and nodded.

* * *

"So. How was it playing 'big brothers' for a couple of days," Kix asked with a smirk. Wooley snorted into his food when Waxer slammed his head on the table.

"Other than his anxiety attack almost giving me a heart attack, it was fine. Kix, it's not like we haven't been with him for hours."

Tup lifted a hand with a confused smile like he was saying 'I'm right here, assholes.'

Cody saw his expression and laughed, "Don't worry we still love you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just for clarification, Tup is not mute. He only is quiet when a trigger happens, so don't worry he'll be talking again.  
> Important question; how do you want the order of the chapters? Really sad then some normal pain with fluff. Or fluff and then the inevitable pain? It's up to you.
> 
> What do you think? Requests?


	18. Chapter 18- Medic Down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kix has the start of a migraine during his shift.

"Oi, Kix you okay?"

Kix snapped his eyes up from his work, seeing Helix standing in front of him. Kix blinked in confusion.

"You looked like you were in pain." Kix waved Helix off, "I'm okay Helix."

Helix rolled his eyes and took a step closer. He hopped onto Kix desk without a second thought.

"Oh go ahead and sit on my desk Helix. No no I'm not doing paperwork at all," Kix said sarcastically, Helix ignored the jab. He swung his legs back and forth like a small child, leveling Kix with an observant gaze.

"Are you 'okay' as in the capacity of a normal human being. Or 'okay' as in typical-crazy-501st-medic standards?"

"I'm fine Helix. And even if I wasn't it's not like I would be dying. So stop hovering, that's the commanders and my husband's job."

"Okay okay, I'll back off. But tell me if you change your mind about being okay."

Kix was helping one of Cody's men set his broken arm back in place. Once he walked away after giving him some pain meds, he felt a dull pain flare in his left temple. He dragged a hand down his face, willing the pain to disappear. 'Come one, just one more hour,' he told himself.

Helix glanced at him from his place beside Sinker, putting a brace on his ankle. Arks was next to the bed beside Sinker's, helping the 212th clone. They met eyes, and Helix tilted his head to the side, saying with his gesture _go check on him_. Arks nodded, checking his brother's vitals before walking towards the younger medic. He placed a gentle hand on Kix's back, raising an eyebrow.

"Headache," was his answer.

Ark's nodded, being his normal quiet self. He looked back at Helix who watched their interaction. Helix mouthed 'Is he okay?' Arks tapped his temple twice, signaling it was a headache. Helix pointed to Sinker and crossed the floor. Arks went to Sinker and Helix went to Kix.

"Kix, go to the barracks. You're in pain, we can see that. We'll cover for you so the admirals don't get pissed," Helix spoke in a soft tone. Kix nodded, not arguing about leaving. Helix gave him a soft pat on the back and a small grin.

As Kix walked through the halls, his headache became a migraine. The harsh, white artificial was _killing_ him. He reached the barracks. He had to focus hard as he entered the code, struggling to remember the code he put in daily. He entered the rec room. He saw Hardcase laying on the floor, messing with some type of 3D puzzle, ADHD most likely kicking in. Fives and Echo were engaged in a conversation. Jesse and Rex were nowhere to be found.

Tup watched Kix enter Torrent's bunk room with a curious gaze, head tilted to the side. Everyone calls it his 'curious puppy' look. He had always been good at reading people. He got up from his spot on the couch, following Kix in the room. Kix was laying in his and Jesse's bed, hands covering his eyes.

Tup frowned, knowing that Kix was in some type of pain. He slowly approached his older brother, wondering if he should get Jesse or not. He gently sat down on the bunk, placing a hand on Kix's thigh. Kix opened his eyes at the touch and pulled his hands away from his face.

"Is something wrong," Tup asked quietly. Kix nodded the smallest bit, a smile coming to his face to reassure the younger boy.

"Just a headache, I'm okay Tup'ika." Tup hesitated, knowing Kix would never admit to feeling bad. Kix had a tendency not except help from others because he is so used to being in control. They didn't blame him, most medics were like that. When Helix rarely got sick, he wouldn't say anything, until Cody had to force him to stay in bed. Arks was considered mute unless he had to ask a hurt brother a question. He felt like he would get in trouble for talking because of something that happened with a trainer on Kamino. That meant he didn't ever ask for help. So Kix was the same, he wouldn't ask for help.

"Alright. I believe you. I'll be in the rec room with the others, yell if you need anything," Tup finally said, going against his better judgment. Kix nodded, eyes falling closed again.

* * *

Kix laid in his shared bunk, eyes closed. He was working his thumbs on his temples, trying to ease the sharp pain in his skull. His senses were slightly heightened, meaning the lights were causing him even more pain. He flinched when the sound of the door opening met his ears.

"Kix you don't look so good, Love," Jesse said, concerned, walking to his husband. Kix didn't have a response. He couldn't even open his eyes. Jesse sat down near his head. He gingerly lifted Kix's head and put it in his lap. Jesse took his thumbs and gently pressed them against his temple. Kix crossed his arms, sinking into Jesse's lap.

" _Cyare_ , I don't think this is just a migraine. They've never caused you this much pain before," Jesse said periodically, sighing. Kix shrugged, not wanting to talk. The others came into the room, causing Kix to cringe and cover his ears. Jesse became even more worried.

"It's okay. It's not too loud," Jesse whispered to him. Kix shifted so he was laying on top of him. Jesse traced the bolts in Kix's hair, stroking a thumb down his arm. Kix buried his face in Jesse's broad chest, whimpering slightly.

"Shhhhh, shhhhh," Jesse cooed lightly pressing a kiss to his head.

Kix and Jesse finally fell asleep. Kix had never had such pitiful night than ever before and that was saying a lot. He tossed and turned, waking his husband multiple times. The older of the two would manage to soothe the medic back to sleep only to wake up two hours later. Kix would wake up to any small sound or any small touch that Jesse accidentally gives him, groaning and would try to fall asleep. Jesse had stayed awake until Kix fell back into restless slumber before following him every time.

Jesse was pulled from his sleep by a hand shaking his shoulder, and Tup was standing over him. He leaned closer not wanting to wake Kix, "We have training in twenty minutes. Just a heads up."

Jesse nodded, rubbing his eyes, trying to be alert. He looked down at his medic, face finally full of peace. Jesse saw that he had intertwined their fingers with Kix on his side, facing Jesse. Jesse was so tired and he guessed the Kix was even more tired, he was up way more than him. Even if his migraine disappeared in the night, he would be exhausted. 

Jesse squeezed his hand lightly, watching his bronze eye's flutter open. Kix quickly covered his eyes with his free hand. Jesse framed his face with his right hand, blocking as much light as he could. Kix slowly opened his eyes once again, adjusting to the lower light. Jesse gave him a small, fond smile.

"You still have a migraine, don't you," Jesse asked to make sure. Kix hummed, "Mhm."

Jesse tsked, feeling bad that his lover was suffering. He had to go to training, but he didn't want to leave Kix to fend for himself. "We have training in a little while, do you want me to stay?"

Kix glared at him to the best of his ability, then whispered, "You're going to training. I know the General wouldn't care most likely but the admirals _will_ be mad."

Jesse sighed in defeat, knowing he was right. He had already gotten a warning from an admiral the other day because he had to help Tup calm down from an anxiety attack. "Fine, I'll go. But keep your comm on you."

Tup watched them interact, seeing Kix's exhausted body position. He slowly ran his fingers through his hair, thinking of what could be wrong. He said it was just a headache. But that statement definitely did _not_ hold up. Fives took a seat beside him, "What are you thinking about?"

Tup's train of thought stopped at the question. He was silent for a moment then said, "Kix has never had a migraine like this. I'm just wondering if it's only a migraine."

Fives nodded understandingly, "He should be fine, but you are right, this isn't normal." The ARC looked and saw that it was time for them to train.

"Hey Jess', we gotta go." Jesse sighed but nodded all the same. He pressed a quick kiss to Kix's lips before standing from the bunk. Kix gave him the best smile he could muster then shut his eyes. Jesse begrudgingly followed the others out, leaving Kix alone once again.

* * *

Kix day went by in a blur, and not a fun one. His head was hurting so bad it hurt to move his body. He would attempt to fall asleep but wake up wanting to scream in pain. He laid in the bunk most of the time just staring at the ceiling. He tried to sit up a few times but it only made it worse.

Jesse and the others came back during one of the very few times he was asleep. They left him alone for the most part, popping in a few times to check on him.

"I'm surprised you two aren't freaking out," Hardcase looked up from a datapad. Jesse knew that part of that statement was aimed at him. The others looked around, confused who the other person was. Tup cocked his head to the side. Hardcase gave him a look, "Yes. I'm looking at you. Usually, you would be panicking." 

Tup playfully rolled his honey eyes. He was aware Hardcase was teasing him and his anxiety. "Very funny 'Case. Absolutely hilarious," he deadpanned. He was interrupted by a whimper coming from the bunks. Jesse briefly closed his eyes, taking a breath, then pushed himself off one of the couches and approached the door.

Kix had managed to get into a sitting position sitting crossed-legged on the bed. His face was hidden in his hands, back heaving slightly. Jesse swiftly went to Kix sitting in front of his frame.

" _Kriff_ Kix. You are not okay Love," Jesse announced pulling Kix close to him. Kix went easily, cuddling into Jesse's warm chest. Tears still came down in rivets. Kix gripped his skull when a painful throb went through it.

"Crying's only going to make it worse, calm down. You can do it," Jesse pressed their foreheads together. Kix vigorously shook his head, telling Jesse that he couldn't. The larger of the two pulled the smaller man's hands away from his head, holding them in his own. "If you calm down, you'll feel better. I promise."

Kix's sobs stopped after a lot of coaxing from Jesse. Jesse was stroking the back of his head, rocking side to side, "Kix. This is scaring me. What is wrong? Do you even know?"

Kix let out a heartbreaking sound, and whispered, "I don't know." His crying started up again, full of pain. Jesse looked down at him with a sympathetic look on his face. He brought Kix even _closer_ locking his arms behind Kix's back.

"Shhhhhh, shhhhhh, I'm right here. Calm down, calm down," Jesse blinked away the tears in his own eyes, feeling so useless that he couldn't help Kix. 'Please just let his suffering end,' he prayed.

Kix peeled his eyes open, only seeing a blinding white light. He whimpered loudly. The white light was a thousand times worse than the barrack lights. Something dropped in the room causing Kix to jump and cover his ears. The dropped sounded like a bomb going off. He was very aware of everything that was touching him, and his head was pounding

"Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck," his mantra was interrupted by people talking but there were so many voices he couldn't pick out one. Suddenly, then stopped. "Kix?" he flinched at the volume. A light touch appeared on his shoulder. He leaned into it after pulling away a centimeter. 

The talking began once again, and Kix cowered away, or at least he tried to. He spaced out, trying to block out everything. He just wanted this to end.

The members of Torrent walked loudly to the bunk room, then stopping in their tracks. Kix let out a whimper, gripping his head. All of them were frozen in shock.

"Okay. We're calling Helix and Arks," Jesse decided for everyone. Tup broke from his trance, "Kix?" He saw Kix flinch when he said his name. Tup made sure to be quiet when he walked towards him. He placed a hand on his shoulder, trying to slightly comfort him. Kix leaned towards him the smallest bit. 

Helix and Arks came into the room and Helix sighed.

" _Haar'chak,_ this isn't a normal migraine," Helix told him after he knocked Kix out, having mercy. "It's called a crippling migraine," was the only information he gave them. Tup and a few others looked very concerned at the name. Arks had to think for a moment to figure out what was wrong then shot an annoyed glare at his fellow medic.

"What?"

Arks smacked him across the shoulder, then threw his arms out to the side with his palms facing up.

"Oh right! That sounded, way better in my head. Don't worry it should pass soon. There are no lasting effects, it's just like a normal migraine but way more painful. Let us know if it doesn't go away, _then_ we would have a problem.

Jesse stared down fondly at his _cyare,_ stroking his spine. He stopped when Kix stirred awake. Kix didn't open his eyes, but he nuzzled into Jesse's neck. Jesse wrapped an arm around his waist, resting his hand on his hip. Kix finally opened his eyes, happily surprised when the light's only hurt a little bit.

Jesse chuckled softly, "Feeling better?" Kix smile and nodded. He pressed a kiss to his husband's lips, silently thanking him. They pulled away when the others called for them. They stood up walking towards the others without a single word passing between them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay, I finally finished this. I have decided to save the next chapter I was going to write fro another day. Random question, if you wanted me to write a long time fic, what would you want the plot to be (clones related).
> 
> What do you think?


	19. Chapter 19- Nightmares Round Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Comet has nightmares and his ADHD isn’t help his already messed up sleep schedule.

When Comet said he was tired, he meant he was sleep-deprived. It was nothing he wasn’t used to, it’s part of being a soldier. But it didn’t help that his ADHD made his life a living hell sometimes. He can turn his brain off sometimes but when he can’t turn it off it means that he starts thinking; and not in a good way. He would stay awake, thoughts swimming through this mind. If he _did_ fall asleep, he would wake up hyperventilating even screaming at some points. But of course, he didn't bring attention to it, that would make the others go psycho with protectiveness.

Wolffe, Boost, Sinker, and Comet and the other clones in the battalion were in the rec room, late in the night, chatting. Their General had dismissed them five minutes ago, stating it was late at night and they should get their rest. They had been in a battle on a backwash planet that the Separatists wanted control of. Everyone's battle high and adrenaline had crashed when they reached their barracks on the ship. Comet was the most exhausted because the only thing that was keeping him awake with his ADHD.

"I am _sooooo_ tired," Sinker complained, eyes slipping closed and leaned on the back of the couch. 

Boost snorted, "I'm with you there."

Comet collapsed dramatically on one of the other couches. He sighed contently as his tense muscles loosened. He heard the rest of his brothers move around, some going to bed and others hanging around the common room. He heard sounds of the couch moving around, and he felt the couch he was on compress. One of his brothers grabbed him by the ribs and pulled him closer towards one of the ends. He went lax, knowing it would be easier for the clone to move him that way.

"You going to fall asleep there pup?" the voice of Ace broke through the quiet chatter. The others chuckled at the nickname, but it was true, Comet was the puppy of the Wolfpack. Comet flicked him off, showing his distaste for the name even though he kind of liked it. The others, besides Arks, chuckled fondly once again at his reaction, thought Arks cracked a smile.

A gentle but hardened hand rested on his knee. Comet slowly cracked his eyes open, eyes focusing on Arks in front of him. He gave him a silent pointed look, trying to convey through a glance, _what's wrong._

Comet sighed and reluctantly spoke in a soft tone, "ADHD was keeping me awake." Arks let a rare sympathetic smile cross his face, but then it became suspicious at the snap of a finger. Comet looked away, finding the couch very interesting. Arks' hand reached under his chin, bring his head towards the left to met eyes.

Arks gave him a stare, daring him to not answer. He fidgeted slightly, "And nightmares." The medic thought for a moment then reached in his belt. He revealed a hypo giving Comet an inviting glance.

"No thanks, I don't want to make a habit," Comet declined giving Arks a weak smile. Arks nodded, squeezing his shoulder comfortingly. 

An hour past and the only clones left were the immediate Wolfpack. Sinker had somehow managed to not snap and let Boost lean on his shoulder. Wolffe was sitting on the same couch as Comet, whose eyes were closed. Wolffe pulled himself up and looked to his brothers.

"I'm tired, I think we should sleep. Or _Bu_ _ir_ will say 'I told you so' tomorrow."

The other two nodded standing as well. They started walking towards the barracks and Sinker called out, "Comet, pup, come on."

Comet didn't move. Wolffe smiled lightly while Sinker and Boost shook their heads fondly, knowing he fell asleep. Wolffe walked to him. He snaked both his arms around Comet's sleeping frame and lifted him into his arms. Comet stirred at the sudden movement, "Wolffe?"

"Go back to sleep, you need it," Comet was too tired to realize that falling asleep meant incoming nightmares. His older brothers walked through the halls of the common room, reaching their room. Wolffe gently placed Comet on his bunk, pulling the sheets up to his chest. 

The three of them examined their youngest, giving him many different looks.

"This is the first time I've seen him sleep since the battle, maybe even before that," Wolffe growled lowly.

"Something's wrong, and I highly doubt he'll tell us." Sinker added.

"We'll figure it out eventually," Boost said, already laying down, "Let's just sleep."

Wolffe and Sinker also laid down, Wolffe's gaze lingered on Comet.

Comet tossed and turned and getting, almost, tangled in the sheets. He shot up in the bed, panting heavily. His eyes darted around the room, blown wide in fear. His chest was heaving, his blacks sticking to his body which was covered in sweat. He gave a shaking sob, dropping his face into his knees. 

He slipped out of his bed. Crossing the cold floors, he reached the side of Wolffe. He pulled back the covers slowly and slipped in beside him. He curled up against the commander's side, soaking up the warm he provided. 

Wolffe shifted, feeling a body press against him. He blinked a couple of times, arm moving to the person in his bunk. He looked down, surprised to see Comet in a ball, shaking. He very quickly became alert, wrapping both arms around his little brother.

"Whoa. Pup, what happened?"

Comet let his sobs ring free, using one of his hands to cover his mouth.

"Was it a nightmare?" Comet nodded a little, still crying. Wolffe sat up and cradled Comet in his arms, stroking his hair.

"I'm here _Com'ika,_ " Wolffe whispered in his ear.

Sinker sat up, previously awoken by Wolffe taking. He shook Boost awake, who grumbled at being disturbed. They gathered around Wolffe's bed, frozen, not knowing what to do. Wolffe looked at both of them while still holding Comet. 

Comet moved closer to Wolffe, closing his eyes tightly. He whimpered and flinched when Sinker's hand went his back. The hand pulled away.

Wolffe looked to Boost and mouthed, 'I don't know what to do.'

Boost hugged the boy from behind, "Do you want to talk about it, _ad'ika_?"

Comet cried harder, shaking his head. He clutched Wolffe and Wolffe held him stead.

"Please don't make talk about it," it came out as a whisper. 

"Okay, you don't have to talk about it," Sinker murmured soothingly. Comet slowly calmed down, just enough to wipe his tears away. Wolffe dropped a kiss on the top of his head, giving him a tight squeeze. Comet didn't move from his older brother's arms. Wolffe understood that he wasn't leaving.

Wolffe slid back into a laying position, pulling Comet with him. He moved his arm in a small circular motion, Comet still hiccuping quietly. Sinker and Boost left after five minutes of their youngest and commander laying down. Wolffe looked at Comet as he tried to calm down so he could maybe fall asleep. 

"Comet, do you want to go to sleep?" Wolffe spoke kindly. Comet didn't answer for a moment but shook his head. Wolffe sighed but vowed to stay awake as well never the less. 

Tup and Comet stood side by side in the training room. Comet was resting on Tup's shoulder, Tup leaning his back on the wall. Tup just let it happen, he already sparred. Comet also looked tired.

"Are you feeling okay," Tup asked finally after minutes of silence. Comet nodded, "Just tired."

"You sure that's all?"

"Mhm."

"I call bullshit."

"I'm fine-" Tup cut him off with a glare.

Tup stared directly in Comet's tired gold eyes, looking for any sign of deception. He was very tired, anyone could tell that. His body language seemed defensive almost like he was protecting himself. 

"You are _not_ fine Comet. When was the last time you slept?"

Comet glared, “Last night.”

Tup put a hand on his hip, “How many hours?”

Comet opened his mouth to speak but snapped it shut. He didn't meet his eyes. Tup laid a hand on his shoulder waiting for an answer.

”...Three.”

Tup didn’t speak. He reached down and took hold of Comet’s hand and he tugged. 

Jesse and Kix gave them concerned looks as they passed. Tup waved them off, looking over his shoulder to say, “We’ll be in the barracks.”

”Why are we here,” Comet asked when they entered the 501st barracks.

”I’m going to use my leave wisely and have you sleep.”

Comet frozen in his steps. Tup looked back, “What?”

“No.”

Tup frowned in confusion, “‘No’ what?”

”I’m not sleeping.”

”Why not? Comet you are exhausted. You were leaning on me the entire time,” Tup used logic against his boyfriend.

“Because...”

Tup waited for him respond but Comet didn’t seem like he was finishing that thought.

”Babe, you’ve got to talk to me,” Tup pleaded. The Wolfpack teen eyes teared up but he quickly scrubbed a hand down his face. Tup closed the distance between them, gripping Comet’s right forearm.

”What’s going on, love?” Tup tried once again. Comet slowly placed his head on Tup’s chest.

”Nightmares.”

Tup used one arm to wrap around his shoulder, leading him to Tup’s room. Tup sat Comet down and did the same.

Comet dreaded the very fact that Tup wasn’t going to let it go until he slept.

”Babe, I don’t want to force you but you’re going to burn out soon. Then Arks is going to have no choice but to knock you out. That’s the last thing I want to happen. Echo went through it and it sucked, and Kix felt so bad about doing it,” he explained softly, “Please just try? For me?”

Comet debated quickly in his head, deciding to suffer and get it over with.

”Okay.”

Soon the two boys found themselves laying down on the bunk. Comet was strategically placed over Tup’s rib cage so he could hear his heartbeat. Tup lazily stroked his hair, struggling to stay awake himself. Comet slipped into unconsciousness, feeling dread course through him, Tup's motions were comforting. 

Tup fell asleep soon after him, only seeing black. Comet on the other hand was having another nightmare, shifting around on the bunk, but he stopped after doing it for ten minutes. 

Tup roused after twenty minutes, remembering who he was sleeping with. He turned his gaze to his sleeping boyfriend, who didn't look peaceful. His eyebrows were knitted together, his body was curled in on himself, and his hands fisted in the sheets. Tup ran a hand through Comet’s jet black hair, hoping it would calm him down.

” _Ud_ _esii_ , Com’ika,” he whispered. Comet thrashed around, deaf to Tup’s words. 

”Comet, wake up love, come on.” Tup shook his shoulder rapidly, repeating what he said over and over.

Comet shot up, a scream dying on his throat. He stood up from the bed, hands clutching his skull. 

Tup didn’t follow him, scared of how badly he reacted. He also felt horrible for making him sleep.

Comet’s breathing was ragged, hands shaking. He shut his eyes but only saw blood. They flew open once again. A fearful noise left his mouth and he didn’t know how much it broke Tup’s heart.

He jumped away when Tup’s arms wrapped around his waist. Tup didn’t let go, following Comet so he didn’t knock him to the ground. “Just me. Just me.” 

Comet spun around in his arms at the voice he recognized and attached himself to Tup’s chest.

“Shhh, shhh. You’re awake baby, you’re awake,” Tup nuzzled his nose in Comet’s hair. 

“I-I’m sorry,” Comet whimpered.

Tup hushed him, “You have nothing to be sorry for. You’ve seen me have anxiety attacks. And nightmares. You’ve seen my bad days and you _still_ stay. So I’m staying with you.”

Tup moved his fragile boyfriend to the empty bunk. He pulled Comet into his lap. The Wolfpack boy wrapped his legs around Tup’s middle and arms around his neck.

”What do you need? Wolffe? Arks?”

”...you” Tup’s heart melted when he answered.

”Okay. I’ll stay,” Tup pressed a kiss to the crown of his head, “Love you.

”I love you too.”

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So sorry this took so long! Life happened.  
> I finally made a tumblr account! The name is yall-it’s-me-nicole, so creative right? Come say hi.
> 
> What do you think?


	20. Chapter 20-"I Don't Have Any Fucking Bacta!"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Wolfpack, Ghost, and Torrent stay behind on a backwash planet. And one of them get's hurt.

"Sirs, let me get this straight. You want us to _stay_ on the planet after the battalions leave?" Fives spoke his mind after hearing the information that was just given to him.

The Jedi, Plo, Obi-Wan, and Anakin, nodded. "I know how bad it sounds, but we don't trust that the Separatists have left the planet completely. So we'll have you boys, just the Alpha squads, stay. Until we get a transport to you," Obi-Wan explained thoroughly. Torrent, Ghost and the Wolfpack gave each other looks, varying in different emotions. Not being near their Jedi, let alone being on different planets, was very odd for them.

"How long until the transport will come for us," Comet hesitantly asked his _Buir_. Plo placed a hand on his shoulder as Anakin answered.

"As long as the Separatists don't engage our forces, in about two days. Or until you destroy the clankers that might still be on the planet after the two days are up."

"We don't want you on the planet longer than you have to," Obi-Wan added.

The commanders had a quick conversation, not wanting to risk their men. They eventually came to an agreement to accept the mission.

Both of the Jedi, who's expressions they could see, smiled reassuringly, "Great, well Anakin, I think our work here is done."

The clones that stayed behind watched as the LAAT gunships zoomed off the planet, heading for the cruiser. Echo blew a sigh out turning to his twin, giving him a sardonic grin, "You always said you wanted a vacation."

Fives rolled his eyes, "This isn't what I meant and you know it." 

* * *

They sat in a circle around the cave they crashed in. They were prepared for the worst but didn't expect that to happen. Kix went through what was left of his medpack, which was not much.

"We're out of bacta so if any of you get hurt in a stupid way, I'm going to let you die," Kix threatened, looking pointedly at the two ARCs who were side-by-side.

"Same goes for you two as well," Helix pointed to the ARF troopers. Boil raised his hands in surrender.

Fives scoffed, "We can feel the love, Kix. And for the record, I haven't been to the medbay, because of an injury, in a long time. So you don't need to worry about me getting hurt in a 'stupid way' as you put it."

"That's because you hide your injuries and let them heal on their own."

"Shut up, Echo."

"I'm just saying _vod_ , you're not the best example for self-care."

The others watched as the two bickered, some finding amusement in it.

"Don't worry Fives we do the same thing," Comet butted in, not remembering that he was surrounded by his older brothers and one of them was a medic. Wolffe gave him a shocked look, "Like hell you do!"

Comet ducked behind Jesse, "Save me." 

Jesse scooted away laughing, "I know better than to get in between two wolves."

Arks glared at Comet, ready to beat his _shebs_ if he was telling the truth. A scared smile appeared on Comet's face. 

"Can I take it back?" he almost squeaked. Arks glared harder but it softened when he looked at the entrance to the cave. He frowned, oblivious to his brother's concerned looks. Arks stood up peering out into the night. He scanned the ground, searching for the source of the disturbance. His brown eyes landed on a group of droids heading towards the village where the leader of the planet resided. He snapped his fingers twice, getting the attention of his brothers.

"Damn, just when we thought the Generals were wrong, karma decides to bite us in the ass," Fives complained.

Rex smacked him across the shoulder, "Alright boys, let's go."

The battle went faster than expected. The clones were able to work quickly and efficiently and get rid of the threat. But it was suspicious for the medics how not even one of them got grazed by a single blast. They quickly disposed of the fallen droids and made sure the people of the village were safe then went back up to their camp.

Tup walked alongside the Wolfpack members having dropped back from Torrent. He was shoulder to shoulder with Comet and Wolffe. He sort of zoned out while walking, not paying attention to the conversation passing between them. Comet's fingers brushed his, forcing Tup's eye's to look into his.

"You okay? You're quiet," Comet observed softly. Tup nodded, "Yeah, I don't know. Something just doesn't seem right."

Comet's hand slipped into Tup's, squeezing tightly. They finished their trek up the hill to reach the cave. They settled in for the night, feeling the adrenaline depart. 

Kix watched as Tup subconsciously placed a hand on his midsection. Kix had seen Tup hit the deck while fighting but he popped up after a few seconds. He assumed that he just did it to avoid getting hit. Tup frowned and stopped in his tracks.

"You okay there?" Kix called.

He didn't answer.

"Tup..." Kix's voice raised as he finished his little brother's name. 

Tup pulled his hand away from his stomach. His hand came back slicked with blood and his armor, below where his hand was, was stained with the same substance, "Fuck."

The others turned at his curse. All of them reacted similarly. Blood began to rush through his blacks, dripping to the floor.

"Mother-!" Wolffe started.

Kix jumped up, "Sit your ass down, now!"

Tup didn't hesitate to follow his order, carefully sliding down the wall.

He winced in pain, only just feeling the effects of his hidden injury. Kix moved quickly to remove the plating of his armor, which was becoming a completely different color. Arks and Helix went and helped Kix with shucking Tup's armor and the top half of his blacks off. Tup soon leaned against the wall, trying his hardest to not look down.

"Why aren't you using bacta?!"

"Because I already said I don't _fucking_ have bacta, you _di'kut_!"

Kix shook his head, frustrated at not knowing where to start first. There were a lot of problems; there was a gash that went across half of his rib cage, gushing blood, bruises stretching on the other side of his ribs, and a piece of some type of metal with about an inch of wood sticking out from the gash, in between his ribs. Arks was checking his pulse looking to Kix, concerned.

"Dammit to hell. Is that a _karking_ arrow?" Kix pointed out, prodding it, unheeding to Tup's flinch of pain. "Arks do we have any hypos or downers?"

Arks rummaged through the medpack but finishing empty-handed. He muttered a very, _very_ quiet curse under his breath, tapping his middle and first finger to his thumb, in sign language, it means 'no'. The other bystanders started to panic. Arks grabbed a rag from the medpack and tossed it to Kix who easily caught it. He pressed heavily on the wound with the rag, shushing Tup lightly when he whimpered at the pressure and bit his lip.

Arks handed the pack to Helix, hoping he would have better luck of finding something useful. Helix scrambled to find something that would work. He ripped out a needle and thread, "This is the best we got, Kix..."

Kix tore his eyes away, sighing while calculating the odds of stitches doing anything. The rest of the Wolfpack, Ghost, and Torrent stayed clear of the scene, moving to the other side of their camp. Comet, Fives, and Rex looked ready to jump up and go to Tup's side but they refrained from doing so.

"I guess it'll have to do. But the problem is," he pointed the obstruction in Tup's ribs, "the arrowhead is stuck in between two ribs and it impaled itself in one of the ribs. There's no way to get it out without using force."

Helix huffed a sigh and asked, "How the hell did it even get in there in the first place?"

"There's no time to think about how it happened, he's losing too much blood," Kix snapped. He steadied himself, gripping the end of the wood. He tried to rip it out but all it did was cause Tup to jerk away when it slipped out of his grasp. 

"I'm sorry Tup," Kix said, pushing his shoulder down. He let Tup catch his breath before moving back to the arrow. It didn't work once again.

"Haar'chak."

The medics studied the open gash on their little brother. Arks paled slightly at a thought that crossed his mind. Kix saw his tan complexion change, "What is it, Arks?"

Ark's hand shook once as he pointed to the rib the arrow was stuck in and brought his hands up to sign the word 'break'. Kix and Helix understood what he was saying, he suggested they break the rib that the arrowhead was in so they could remove it. The others were shocked at the suggestion.

"I don't know Arks," Kix whispered, "It might puncture his lung or worse."

Helix glanced at Kix, "What other choice do we have? You said it yourself, he's losing blood fast."

Kix stared at Tup's face, seeing nothing but pain written in it. His yellow gold eyes were shut like it would make the pain go away. Kix eventually moved, reaching for Tup's blacks on the ground next to him. Taking the non-bloody part of the blacks he brought it to Tup's mouth.

"Open," he commanded softly. Tup allowed the black fabric to be placed in his mouth, he would much rather bite fabric than his tongue. Arks gently placed his hands on his shoulders, not quite pushing down yet, keeping Tup's head pointed away from Kix and Helix. He ran a comforting thumb over his collar bone, watching Kix and Helix get ready to break his rib.

Comet looked away, feeling sick to his stomach. Sinker led him to his chest so he didn't have to watch. Fives gripped Rex's hand, hiding his face in his other hand.

"This is going to hurt, really bad," Helix told the eighteen-year-old bluntly. 

Kix placed his hands on Tup's warm body, then his ribs. He didn't give a countdown. Tup would have jumped away if he did.

Tup screamed, painful cries ripping out of his throat. Tears sprung into his eyes and fell. He felt like he couldn't breathe, he could only take shallow breaths. His screaming tore his brother's hearts in half, even Wolffe's cold, tiny heart. Fives groaned lightly, dropping his head on Rex's shoulder. Echo looked about ready to throw up.

Kix appeared in Tup's line of vision, running a soothing hand over his messy hair. 

"I know it hurts Tup'ika, but you have to take deep breaths, or you'll pass out."

As Tup regained his breath, he slowly leaned closer to Arks. Kix moved the bone around a little bit, causing Tup minor discomfort, setting it in place.

Kix looked up for a split second, keeping his eyes on Tup then told him, "As long as you don't move around much or hit you ribs, you won't puncture a lung."

Kix peered at Helix pointing his head down towards the needle and thread laying on the ground. Helix dived back into the medpack, pulling out a tube of lidocaine.

"We're going to have to work fast or it will wear off," Helix stated lightly dabbing the gel on the gash, numbing it. Arks sat down, stroking the top of the younger clone's head, distracting him from what the other two medics were doing. Kix threaded the needle and brought it to the jagged skin of Tup's torso.

"Helix, can you pinch it closed somehow?"

The 212th medic nodded, taking his thumb and first fingers of both hands and pinched to bring the skin closer together. Kix carefully but swiftly pushed the needle through the skin. He worked quietly and as quickly as he could, but not even a third of the was through Tup started shifting more and more.

Kix whispered in Helix's ear, "The lidocaine is going to wear off, and he's going to be in pain. What do we do? Do we just push through and keep going?"

"Yes, there's no other option. If we stop now we'll never finish and he'll bleed out."

And low and behold, Tup started whimpering two minutes later, feeling the needle pierce his skin. He bit his lip so hard it was close to bleeding. Arks placed a hand on his shoulder blades, grounding him so he wouldn't freak out too bad. He also offered him his free hand to squeeze which he did.

"Halfway through kiddo," Helix said softly. Tup was shaking, the pain was so bad. It wasn't just the damn needle stabbing him, it was his whole chest. It hurt to breathe on either side of his lungs. Arks' hand stroking his shoulders was comforting though. He willed himself to just pass out, not wanting to deal with the pain. Somehow he managed to fall asleep.

Kix surveyed his work. The stitches were neat and evenly spaced, and the most important thing was that they had closed the gash completely. Both him and Helix were exhausted. Bloodstained their hands.

"We'll check on him throughout the night. The last we need is for those stitches to burst."

They put more wood on the fire, just enough that it would hopefully last the rest of the night. Kix settled down next to Jesse, who wrapped his arm around the tired medic.

* * *

Tup pealed his eyes open when he felt something brush against his forehead. Kix was above him but not looking at him. He felt sticky like he had been sweating for hours but he was cold. Kix finally looked down at him. He gave him a small smile.

"You're sick. The gash got infected. You've been out for about seventeen hours."

Tup nodded sleepily. Then a wave of nausea hit him like a sack of bricks. He leaned onto his side and emptied his stomach. Kix scrunched his noise in sympathy and moved to hold onto Tup's upper arm.

"Damn," he said when he was finished, leaning into Kix's chest.

"Yeah, that might happen again. Why don't you try and fall back asleep, you might be able to shake the infection by the time we get back to the _Resolute_."

Tup's honey eyes slipped closed again. Kix sighed and reached for a clean rag and a canteen of water. He dripped water on the fabric, ringing it out. He gently dabbed Tup's face, wiping the sweat away.

Fives and Rex re-entered the camp, coming close to the pair.

"Is he doing okay," Fives asked anxiously. Kix didn't take his eyes off of his younger brother when he answered, "He threw up, but other than that he's doing good, or as well as he possibly can."

Rex placed a hand on Kix's shoulder, "Take a break, Kix. You've worked hard enough."

Kix hesitated before handing the rag to Rex and standing. Rex shifted to were Kix was previously sitting. 

Fives sat on the other side of Tup, running his fingers through his jet black waves. Tup shifted, brow creasing. He let out a soft whine.

"Easy, easy. You're okay. We're right here," Rex soothed. Tup's body shook a little. Fives and Rex met each other's eyes and they smiled softly.

" _Buir_." 

Their eyes snapped back down at the speed of light at soft call. Tup was looking up at Rex. Rex's heart leaped into his throat, but happiness pooled in his stomach.

"Hey kiddo," he smiled, "I'm right here, okay?"

Tup pressed his face into Rex's thigh, soaking up his warmth. Rex gingerly placed a hand on the back of his skull like Tup was made of glass and about to break at any moment. Rex couldn't stop grinning.

Rex and Fives walked out of the cave going to somewhere seclusive. Tup had fallen asleep once again, the infection making him exhausted.

When they reached a place away from everyone else, Fives swiveled around to glare at Rex.

"Damn you!"

Rex laughed, "What? It's not my fault he chose to call me _buir_ first."

Fives pouted until Rex rolled his eyes playfully, putting an arm around his shoulders.

"Don't worry your time will come."

Comet fiddled with his fingers, sitting next to Tup. Tup grabbed his hands, "What's wrong?"

Comet smiled lightly at his boyfriend's ability to read people easily. He shrugged a shoulder, trying to deflect.

"No Comet. We're not playing that game. Tell me what's wrong. You've barely spoken a word. So spill."

Comet blinked a few times then looked into Tup's honey orbs.

"I dunno. Just seeing you covered in blood messed me up," he admitted quietly. Tup sighed, closing his eyes. Then pulled Comet down to lay next to him. He took Comet's right hand and placed it over his own heart.

"See? I'm still breathing. I'm right in front of you, Com'."

"I know I know. But still..." the 104th trooper trailed off.

Tup carefully, trying not to rip the stitches, place a hand on the curve of his waist.

"Trust me. I'm okay."

* * *

"Good to see you boys back, even if one of you was dinged a little," Anakin said as they got off of the LAAT two days later.

Fives smirked knowing, "Yeah well, we didn't exactly have all the supplies we needed."

"Even though I love you Tup," Kix started, "it's not my fault I couldn't heal him completely because he got hurt in the first place. Because I told you guys not to get hurt. I said I didn't have any _karking_ bacta, you idiots!"

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back! I am now in a good mental place, so I have returned. Have you missed me? I wasn't planning on having Arks know sign language but it's very hard to write a character that only does actions. The others know basic ASL (yes, no etc), mostly the Wolfpack Let me know if you want to request anything.
> 
> So, what do you think?


	21. Chapter 21-Baby Steps

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Baby steps are very important.

Baby steps are always the perfect way to get back to normal. For Fives and Rex, the baby steps were happening, but in their defense, Jango never taught Rex how to fix a _romantic_ relationship. They had begun to open up to each other once again, and they promised to be completely honest with themselves and with Tup.

"Hardcase, oh my gods, just put a blaster in it already." Kix visibly rolled his eyes at Hardcase. They were ready to sleep for the night and the ADHD ridden clone couldn't stop being his hyperactive self. Just to annoy Kix, he didn't stop his antics until Tup reached for a pillow on an empty bunk and flung it at his brother.

" 'Case, I already have to deal with Comet being annoying, and I have to be nice because he's my boyfriend. You don't want to see what I will do to you. I'm not afraid to do permanent damage, consequences be damned," Tup snapped, who was a very tired teenager at the moment.

Rex and Fives looked at him fondly, knowing how he could get when he's tired. Fives shook a small shake of his head, hiding a laugh. He laid down and propped himself on his arms. Rex was laying his left side, which allowed him to look at his lover. Fives was still watching the conversation happen and Rex was able to see him fully, without the armor. He laid fully down and locked eyes with the Captain. He smiled at him, and for the first time in a long time, there was love within it. Rex smiled back, fall asleep shortly after.

Fives jolted awake, sitting up in his bunk. He looked to his left, seeing his kid's chest rising and falling consistently. He heard a rustle beside him. He turned to met his lover, who gave him an up-and-down look. 

"Everything okay?" Rex's voice was rough with sleep.

Fives dipped his head just once, expecting his voice to break. Rex had a scrutinizing gaze in his golden eyes. He knew Fives like the back of his hand and he knew that Fives wouldn't go to sleep. Rex patted the bed next to him inviting over.

Fives looked suspicious, "You serious?"

Rex rolled his eyes smiling gently, "You know me Fives. Come on."

Fives didn't hesitate. He stood and climbed in next to him. Rex scooted back putting a few inches between them, for both their sakes. Fives looked down at the sheets.

"You want to talk about it? Or at least give me a clue as to what's wrong?" Rex tried. He was becoming worried, nightmares sucked, he knew that and Fives was somehow was able to brush them off, but not this one.

Five looked up reluctantly, biting the inside of his cheek, and tears in his eyes. 

'So, it was _that_ bad.' 

Rex closed the gap he had made himself. Fives tucked his head under Rex's chin, silent tears falling. Rex put one hand in Fives' dark hair and another on his hip.

"Shhhhh, you're awake, you're here with me. I'll keep you safe," Rex whispered in the younger clone's ear. Fives shook his head, pitifully, "It's not me I'm worried about."

"Is it Tup?"

Fives whimpered, "Mhm."

Rex damned all the gods that made Fives afraid of losing Tup.

"Hey, the kid's okay. He's breathing. Look," Rex gingerly turned the ARC around in his arms. Fives locked his eyes on Tup's sleeping form. He looked at Tup, seeing him relaxed finally, all the stress and worry gone slipped away as he slept. But the biggest thing that he noticed was his chest moving.

Fives stopped crying and sunk into the bed.

"M'sorry Rex."

Rex squeezed Fives hip in warning, "You have nothing to apologize for. You're human, Fives. One that I personally adore so much," Fives managed to smile, "I don't care what the _kriffing_ long necks said, you can cry."

Rex let go of his body, moving back the smallest bit. He didn't want to overstep. Things weren't tense between them but they weren't what they were before, at least not yet.

Tup stood up from his bunk, talking to Jesse and Kix in hushed tones to not wake their brothers. He stopped when he looked to Fives bunk but didn't see the ARC. He was confused, he didn't hear him leave during the night or early morning. But then again he slept pretty heavily last night.

His eyes raised a fraction. His heart jumped. 

'Am I seeing things?'

When he saw Fives and Rex, laying in the same bed, and in somewhat close proximity. Kix turned to see the same scene with a grin spreading on his face. Without taking his eyes off his brothers he tapped Jesse on the shoulder.

Tup looked to the couple beside him, confusion obvious in his features.

Kix laughed lightly, "Kiddo, we're seeing the same thing, don't worry."

Tup's expression now seemed shocked. He silently asked Kix and Jesse whether what he wanted to happen was happening.

The Lieutenant and the medic chuckled, "Yes Tup they're working on it. Baby steps first."

Jesse jumped in, "Then you'll get your _Buirs_ back."

"They're not my _buirs_ ," Tup rolled his eyes heatlessly.

"Uh-huh. Keep telling yourself that."

* * *

"Fives, what are you doing," Rex laughed as Fives dragged him through the hallways.

"Well, we haven't had much time to ourselves so I thought the only way to get you to relax is to do the exact opposite."

Fives dragged him into an open gym, smiling devilishly.

"Oh gods, you're going to be the death of me, Fives," Rex said getting into a defensive position.

Fives smile again and took the first move, he tried to tackle Rex to the ground by going for the chest. Rex went with the tackle but rolled over and pushed Fives away.

"How many times have Alpha and I told you _not_ to go straight for the chest?" Rex reprimanded him, mockingly.

Fives groaned, "Worth a shot."

Rex blocked a shot from Fives with his forearm. Rex noticed how Fives took on the aggressive option from the very start. Rex very rarely turned aggressive, it just wasn't his style. He knew Fives was the aggressive type but for a second the ARC backed off and went into a defensive position.

"What? You gettin tired?" Rex teased.

"Hardly. You know I'm going to beat you."

Rex laughed, throwing his head back, "You wish Fives. You may be an ARC," Rex twisted Fives' arm behind his back and whispered in the shell of his ear, "But I'm still your Captain."

In the blink of an eye, Rex was on his back with Fives straddling his hips. Rex was completely shocked at the action, he has never been slammed on the mats by his men, his _ori'vod_ were a different story.

Fives smiled innocently at Rex, eyes playful, "You were saying?"

Rex dropped his head to the floor. He glanced up again. Both of them smiled, enjoying the moment then Fives' eye shot down very quickly to Rex's lips, by accident of course. Rex frowned then laughed, enjoying catching Fives.

Fives quickly moved away from Rex, pouting. Rex laughed even more.

" _Fiv'ika_ did I really just see you do that. I knew you were flirty but still," Rex teased.

Fives had to refrain from rolling his amber eyes, "Yeah, yeah. Whatever."

Rex calmed down before smiling reassuringly at Fives. Fives hesitantly looked to him, still mad he got caught."

Rex placed a hand on his shoulder, turning him closer, "Fives. It's okay. I'm fine with it." 

Fives looked directly at him and snapped, "Are you? Because last time you said that, I fucked up."

Rex sighed, frustrated at Fives' self-deprecating actions. He placed a hand under the younger man's chin.

"Fives, you didn't fuck up. And I know you don't believe me but you didn't _cyar'ika._ "

Fives froze at the name, he hadn't heard Rex utter that name since before the first break up. Rex's hand didn't pull away, but it did slide to cup the side of his face. Rex cocked his head to the side, a sad smile appearing. The captain hesitated then spoke, "Can I?"

Fives froze, _again_ , but nodded all the same. Both of them were a little scared, not really prepared. They met halfway, lips locking together. The kiss didn't last long, but it didn't matter to them, that was the first time they had kissed with real meaning in months. They pulled back, and Fives kissed him again for a few more seconds then pulled back for good.

Fives dropped his head on Rex's shoulder, curling around his arm. Rex rested his blonde head on top of Fives' dark hair. Fives whispered quietly, "I love you."

Rex looked down as Fives looked up. Rex smiled and pecked his lips against Fives once again, "I love you too."

They were interrupted by Tup bursting through the door.

"Rex, Fives, I'm going to kill Hardcase. I swear I will."

Fives and Rex laughed at Tup's suffering standing and walking to him. Tup glanced at them, "You two look happy."

Fives smiled sardonically, "Well I beat Rex's ass."

"You did not Fives!"

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Done! This one was a quicky but I really wanted to get this out, even if I was looking up how to bullshit your way to abs (even though I'm an athlete 😭). A very very steamy chapter may be the next chapter, I don't really know yet but it will be soon.
> 
> What do you think, requests?


	22. Chapter 22-Jesse and Kix

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Explicit content below

Jesse sat in the rec room, missing Kix once again. For one reason or another. He felt something down near his crotch area. He groaned quietly, shifting so he was lying face down, not wanting the younger ones of the battalion to see. Hardcase gave him a weird look, playing with something in his hands. Jesse glared at him, a 'don't ask' expression on. Hardcase thought about it for a moment then had to hide a chuckle with a cough.

"So is that a blaster or is someone happy?" Hardcase teased.

"I will destroy you, 'Case. Not. Funny."

"What's not funny?" Fives popped in. Jesse gave him a look, then pointed down. Fives eyes widen then he winced in sympathy, "Yikes. Any reason?"

Jesse rolled his eyes, "Nope. Other than Kix is in the medbay."

Fives tossed him a comm, that already had Kix's frequency put in.

"Are you crazy?! He'll kill me for calling him for no reason."

 _"What?"_ came the clipped voice of an irritated and stressed Kix.

"Kix, _cyare_ , love of my life-" Jesse tried to sweet-talk him into not yelling at him.

 _"Jesse, I don't care right now. Do **not** call again unless there is something wrong," _Kix snapped then said in a calmer but tired voice, _"I'll be back at 2400 hours."_

Hardcase and Fives had heard the conversation. Fives pursed his lips together, avoiding eye contact."

Jesse clicked the comm off, staring directly at Fives with a bored expression, "Happy?"

Fives slowly backed away saying, "Take a shower and deal with it. And _don't_ let my kid see."

Rex glanced up as the barrack door open hearing Jesse walk down the hall to the rec room. He dragged a hand down his face, tiredly. Rex smiled, amused lightly at his predicament.

"Any luck?"

"Nope."

Rex snorted light, walking towards the main doors, "We have training, maybe it will take your mind off things."

Jesse nodded, following after him.

* * *

Jesse slammed Wooley onto the mats, putting a knee on his back. They had gone back and forth for a while. And Jesse put him down a little harder than necessary. He winced himself at the force he used.

"Damn," the youngest of Ghost said, hitting a submissive hand on the ground. Jesse got to his feet and reached a hand down to him. Wooley was pulled up by Jesse, who clapped him playfully on the back.

"Sorry 'bout that. You okay?"

Wooley laughed it off, "Don't worry, Wolffe is worse."

Hardcase and Fives smirked tauntingly, leaning on the wall.

Hardcase started, "You took Wooley down pretty hard."

"Was there any type of _tension_ involved, that you needed to get out?" Rex leaned Tup forward, who walked to the other side to talk to Wooley, so he could smack Fives across the head, silencing him from saying anything else.

"Stop patronizing him. You've been in the same position before and you weren't able to work it out at the given moment. So don't even."

Tup and Wooley looked very confused.

"What?" Tup asked innocently.

Hardcase didn't realize it was the youngest who asked, "Jesse has a b-." He cut his sentence off because of the glares of the others. 

"Nothing." they all said simultaneously after a moment. Tup and Wooley shared confounded looks once again.

"Okay, act weird why don't you," Tup said walking away with Wooley.

Once they walked away Rex smacked Hardcase.

"What-" he squawked.

Rex pointed a finger at him, "You _know_ what that was for."

Hardcase rolled his eyes lightly, "Rex, the kid's eighteen-"

"Nine," he corrected with a smirk. Hardcase did an imitation of a fish out of water.

"That is so not fair."

"Yes, it is," Fives sided with Rex.

* * *

Kix carefully walked into the barracks, being careful of his sleeping brothers. He stripped his armor off slowly, carefully stacking it next to Jesse's on the floor. He heard someone walking behind him. He smiled lightly, knowing it was Jesse.

"Someone's up late," Kix stated, smirk in his voice.

"Couldn't sleep," Jesse replied easily, seeing Kix's slow moments, propping a shoulder on the door.

"What wrong?" he knew something was up with Kix. Kix sighed lightly, not responding. Jesse pushed himself off the wall and hugged Kix from behind. Kix let his head fall back with a tired sigh leaving him, sinking into Jesse's hold.

"Just a long day." Kix finally said. Jesse pressed a kiss to his shoulder, willing to press down his desires until Kix wanted to. Kix then remembered that Jesse had commed him.

"Why'd you comm me? That was really random."

Jesse shot an annoyed glare at the sleeping ARC across the room, "Fives decided to be an ass and call you from my comm."

"Aw did you miss me that bad," the medic chuckled.

"Yeah, _something_ like that," Jesse mumbled into his shoulder. Kix thought about the statement for a moment. He pressed a hand to his mouth the hide the laughter he had almost let out, and his back heaved with suppressed laughter. Jesse pinched Kix's hip in retaliation, " _Not_ funny."

Kix spun around, linking his hands together behind his husband's neck. He smiled fondly (and teasingly), kissing him softly. In the blink of an eye, the kissing went from sweet to heat. Jesse slipped his tongue into Kix's open mouth, causing Kix to moan quietly. Kix's hand slid down to Jesse's hip, teasing him by trailing his thumb very lightly over the bulge in his blacks Kix broke away and quickly said, "We don't want to wake our _aliit_ now do we?" tugging him to the 'fresher.

The connected their lips once again, hands trailing everywhere. Jesse started working on Kix neck, pressing light kisses teasingly. Kix sighed contently, putting a leg between Jesse's, grinding against him lightly.

"Damn, you're already grinding?" Jesse laughed, hand sliding up the top half of Kix's blacks.

"Just get on with it already," Kix almost whined. 

Jesse didn't obey, he continued to kiss Kix, touching everywhere but his cock. Soon both of their top blacks were scattered on the ground. Jesse pushed Kix's hips against the wall so he couldn't move them forward. Kix and Jesse kissed, battling for dominance. Kix hands were free, and were on the side and back of Jesse's head, able to pull him closer. Kix put up a fight but eventually lost the battle as Jesse squeezed his member.

Kix's eyes closed, feeling his muscles relax under his lover's hands. He moaned rather loudly when Jesse pressed against his cock. He hit his head on the wall behind him, about to lose his mind.

"Jesse, please," he begged quietly. Jesse slowly zipped down the blacks. Kix whined again and Jesse took pity on him and went faster. Jesse reconnected their lips, tongue slipping in. Kix fumbled with Jesse's blacks, forced to do two things at once. They were bare within a minute, hands traveling across everywhere.

Kix oddly became slightly tense. Jesse slowed down a bit, putting his hands on his back, holding more than pinning.

" _Udesiir, udesiir,_ " he whispered in between kisses. As Kix relaxed, the heat was back into their actions. Kix bit gently on Jesse's lip, and the Lieutenant let out a groan.

"Damn you," he cursed lightly, catching Kix in another passionate kiss. Kix smiled mischievously.

They were making for what felt like hours, both of them were in blissful ignorance of their sleeping brothers. Jesse's hand wandered down to Kix's cock and wrapped a hand around the shaft. Kix groaned, head falling to his husband's shoulder, " _Kriff, kriff, kriff."_

Jesse began pumping his hand up and down. Sometimes he would teasingly run a thumb over his tip. 

"Keep doing that and the fun won't last much longer," Kix stated, fighting back a groan. Jesse didn't listen once again. Just as Kix was about to give in to his release, Jesse let go.

"You motherfucker," Kix glared at him.

"You're starting to sound Wolffe with that mouth."

"So you want me to bite like him?" Kix challenged. Jesse laughed, kissing him again. He backed both of them up, spinning so Kix's lower back was pressed to a counter near the sinks. Jesse took him the hips and lifted him up to sit on top of it.

He pulled Kix to the edge of the counter. Kix felt his finger make light circles around his hole. Jesse put more pressure and slipped his finger in. Kix moaned at the fullness. Jesse waited until Kix whined, wanting more, then put in his second finger. 

"Fuck Jess'," Kix moaned. Jesse trailed his lips along his neck, getting Kix to lean fully on him. By the time his third finger was in Kix was begging for more. 

Jesse was about to move to the next level, but Kix stiffened. If you were looking at him, you wouldn't see anything. But Jesse was his husband and knew his body language better than anyone.

"Hey," he stopped his movements completely. "Look at me," He commanded softly. Kix pulled back to look into the eyes of his _riduur._ Jesse cupped his face tenderly, thumbs rubbing slow circles on his cheekbones, "What are you thinking about?"

"Nothing," Kix dismissed it, looking away. 

Jesse sighed, knowing it wouldn't be that easy.

"I'll make you a deal," paused until Kix glanced up again, "We'll finish this, but after you tell me what's bothering you. Deal?" Jesse gave him a fail-safe on purpose. 

Kix answered with a kiss, bring Jesse's body closer to his. Jesse pressed his pulsating cock against Kix's entrance, pushing in. Both of them groaned loudly before Jesse started rocking his hips. Kix whined quietly.

"Fuck, Kix," the other called breathlessly. Kix moaned as Jesse's motions picked up in pace. His heart was hammering in his chest, pleasure rippling over him. He felt Jesse's hips snap up very fast.

" _Mesh'la,_ Love."

Both of them were close to their climax, panting heavily and moans slipping past their lips. Kix felt warmth pool in the bottom of his stomach. Jesse's hand found it's way back to Kix's cock and timed his strokes with the movement of his hips.

"Fuck fuck fuck," Kix groaned as he released into Jesse's hand. Jesse finished quickly after him. Kix collapsed in Jesse's arm, laying his head on his chest. Jesse slipped out of Kix, lazily his arms around him.

"Shower. I'll meet you in the bunk room." Jesse kissed the top of his head, pulling him down from the counter. He left after he cleaned himself up and heard the water be turned on.

Jesse crashed on the bed, rolling onto his back. He waited patiently for Kix to return, which was only five minutes. Kix fell into his open arms once again. He curled up to his chest, briefly closing his gold eyes.

"So..." Jesse prompted but Kix didn't engage.

"Why were you irritated and snappy when Fives called you?"

Kix looked at his hands sadly and said in a small voice, "As I said, it was a long day."

Jesse huffed, but not in an irritated way, "Kix, even the long days don't do this to you."

Kix didn't do anything but stare at his hands.

"What happened that is making you-"

"Jesse stop. Please," Kix begged lightly, eyes becoming blurred. Jesse was becoming very concerned, Kix had never closed himself off from him.

"Love..." he hesitated but pushed through it. "How many?" he knew it was about the men Kix and the other medics had lost.

Kix looked up to him but quickly tore his eyes away, "Too many."

Jesse yanked Kix gently on top of him completely. He didn't say anything, he didn't need to.

* * *

Fives had a knowing look on his face, while Rex had an annoyed one aimed at him.

"Okay, really," Tup said incredulously while they were in the mess the following morning, "What is with the smirk Fives?"

Fives and Rex shared a look. Fives raised his eyebrows, "Well, Tup. Um."

Hardcase rolled his eyes and did it for Fives, "Jesse had a boner and Fives was teasing him," he gave a look to Fives, "Happy?"

Tup looked let down, "That's it?"

Fives and Rex, who had been both taking a drink, choked on their water. The others looked shocked but laughed.

"What?! How do you know about that?" Rex stared at Tup.

"Well, it was kind of obvious wasn't?" 

The others shrugged, agreeing.

"And they most _definitely_ took care of it last night. Anyone could have heard that." 

Fives and Rex looked almost mortified.

 _"How does he know what sex is? Did you tell him?"_ Fives asked in flawless Mando'a.

 _"Even if I did, how would he know what it **sounds** like?_" Rex replied. Both of their eyes fell on the teenager that was across the room, Comet.

Fives stared at Tup, who picked up his glass of water, dead in the eye, "Have you and Comet been having sex?"

Tup eye's widened. He spun around and spit his water out, coughing after inhaling most of the mouthful. Ghost Company, who was kind of listening in, laughed quietly. Boil buried his face in Waxer's shoulder to hide his laughing.

Jesse broke down into laughter.

Hardcase was cackling, "Oh my fucking gods, that's _karking_ priceless."

Once Tup regained his breath he wiped back around, "No! I haven't done anything with Comet!"

Comet had heard his name somehow and turned around. Wolffe and the others followed his gaze to Torrent.

Fives mouthed to Comet 'I'm watching you.'

Comet nodded, slightly scared of the threat, and went back to his food.

"If you ever, and I mean even as close as having your clothes off in the presence of another person, have sex before your twenty-five, I'll kill you myself," Rex threatened.

"Speak for yourself," he muttered under his breath but Rex still heard him.

Cody looked from Tup to Rex, seeing murder in his eyes, "Oooooo you better run."

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I, am, so sorry if you cringed your way through this. I was kind of out of my comfort zone. Holy fuck, this is on the internet now 😂. Huge thanks to AngelWars for the help I needed with this chapter.
> 
> What do you think? Requests?


	23. Chapter 23-Watch the Dominoes Fall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tup isn't the only one with anxiety attacks.

Dominoes. There was a lot of irony in that one word for Fives and Echo.

"Watch the dominoes fall," the other cadets would say. Even their trainers thought they would fail, Shaak Ti may have even thought it from time to time. It was almost like a curse like fate was just _waiting_ for them to crash and burn. And the dominoes did fall, all but two. 

Echo sat on the top bunk, in the barracks of the 501st. He felt out of place, even if he did have Fives, it wasn't the same. They had been thrown into the 501st, with _vod_ they didn't know other than Rex. Jesse seemed nice enough, Kix was kind but protective, and Hardcase was just a can of worms and pent up hyperness.

They had just watched three of their batch mates bite the dust, dying so quickly. Droidbait was brutally killed by commando droids and was the first domino to fall. Cutup had been eaten by a giant eel, second one down.

And Hevy... Echo felt sick with guilt and sadness thinking about Hevy. He and Echo hadn't really got along during training, they fought more times than they didn't. They were polar opposites, but he sometimes had Fives in his corner, who was directly below him.

The 501st was on leave for a few days, a new rule set by the Generals saying they needed a break every once in a while. Echo didn't say anything when they others offered for Fives and Echo to join them. Fives had glanced at Echo, reading his defeat demeanor, then declined for the both of them.

Fives sat back down on the bunk, aimlessly staring at the wall, not sure what he was waiting for. Echo was doing the same, but he was thinking, which at the current moment wasn't a good idea. Emotions came bubbling back up. Echo placed his hand in his hands, squeezing his eyes shut. He evened out his breathing as best as he could to keep up the illusion to Fives that he wasn't breaking down.

But Fives wasn't stupid. He heard odd intakes of air coming from his brother. He climbed the latter to reach Echo's bunk. Echo was in the middle, sitting cross-legged. Fives copied his position, leaning his elbows on his knees.

"Echo what's wrong?" Fives said gently. Echo looked up with teary, sad golden eyes. Fives heart hit his stomach, he hadn't realized how bad Echo felt.

"Is this about the others," he whispered, swallowing back his hesitation. Echo nodded, a tear falling. Fives wiped it away with his thumb. He felt bad, he didn't think Echo would have such a large reaction to the death of the others. He knew he couldn't say anything to make it better, but he could offer something else.

"Do you want me to stay with you?"

Echo didn't even think when he nodded. Fives brought him into his arms, cradling him close.

"I've got you _vod'ika_."

Echo gave a dry chuckle, "By two minutes."

From that moment on Fives never let Echo sleep alone and vise versa.

Down go three dominoes.

* * *

Echo felt cold. He's felt that way for the past week. Everything was piling on him, he was rethinking and reliving everything. And the others weren't exactly blind to it but they didn't act upon it. The stress was getting to him, and it was making him irritated.

Echo stared at his plate, not eating and just playing with it. He felt a smaller hand slip into his, warm and not as rough as the others but still firm. A head was placed on his shoulder. Echo gave a gentle smile.

Tup looked up at him, "I can see you're upset. What's up?"

Echo laughed in amusement and deflected him with, "How do you do that?"

Tup frowned, not quite understanding what he meant, "What do you mean?"

"You always seem to be able to read us."

Tup shrugged, "I don't know, I just can tell when someone's sad or mad or...," he glared at Echo, "Oh no, you're _not_ deflecting this."

He was cut off at Rex's voice calling them, "Tup, Echo come on."

Echo smirked condescendingly, "Oh, yes I am." 

The 501st walked to the training room with the 104th. Tup and Comet were the first to spar. They went back and forth teasingly before Comet pinned him to the ground.

Fives nudged his shoulder, "You're quiet."

Echo didn't look at him, "I'm fine. Just thinking." Fives rolled his eyes, "Well you're thinking so hard that I can hear you."

Echo hit his head against the wall. Fives dropped the subject with a sigh of, "Eyayah _..."_

"Echo. Jesse, Hardcase, and I are going to 79's, you wanna come?" his batch mate called. Echo shook his head, not looking at him. Fives sighed, his hope of Echo coming with them seeping away. He almost didn't follow the others when they left but Rex steered him out of the room. He took him to the side in the hallway.

"You're worried about Echo, I know. I will watch him as much I can but I have a meeting with the Generals, so Tup will also look after him," Rex took Fives face in his hands, "I promise to watch him. You won't be the last domino standing."

Fives dipped his head after a moment of thought. He gave Rex a quick kiss then left to catch up with the others. Rex grinned lightly then walked back into barracks, seeing Tup lounging around scrolling through the holonet on a datapad.

"Hey Tup," he got his attention, "Make sure to keep an eye on Echo, if you could, please."

Tup was sitting in his bunk looking at a datapad, with Echo in the barracks with him. His comm chimed with an incoming message. Echo turned his eyes only to Tup, who reached for his comm and read the message. Tup let a faint smile cross his face. Echo sighed, he is an ARC, and he knew when people were spying on him. He knew that Fives or Rex put Tup up to it.

"Tup. Go see Comet. I'll be fine," he softly spoke to him. Tup looked apprehensive about leaving his brother. He wasn't going to lie and say he wasn't worried.

Echo dispiritedly looked down, "Tup, go."

He didn't scan Tup as he left the room. Echo was once again in his bunk, alone, struggling to contain his emotions. He felt weak, powerless. His chest was tightening, and tears were forming in his eyes.

'No, I'm fine, I'm fine. I'm not going to lose it.' he said to himself. He looked around the dark bunk room, no one else present with him. The others weren't back yet. Echo, at the same time, felt lonely but was happy that he was alone. So no one could see him freak out, but he also wanted the comfort of his brothers. 

He was at a crossroads; he could get up and find Fives or stay in bed and suffer. Echo glanced at the door then laid down on the bed.

'Looks like I'm suffering.'

Echo fell into a fitful sleep, chest heavy.

* * *

Kix was giving a hard glance to Echo the next morning. He could see the exhaustion and sadness rolling off of Echo. He didn't want to pry but the medic in him was urging him to say something.

Echo's plate had been pushed away minutes ago, never to touch it. Kix pulled the food closer to Echo, with a firm point to eat it. Echo nodded slightly in obedience and took a bit. Kix seemed satisfied with his actions and turned away, beginning a conversation with Jesse. Echo slowly ate, feeling his stomach flip with anxiety. 

A hand brushed his side. Echo jumped away at the touch, startled. Fives' hand froze in mid-air. 

The younger ARC sighed and gave a guilty look to Fives, "It's not you. It was me."

Fives slowly moved his hand away. Everyone had stopped and looked back and forth between the two. Fives stood up from the table and jerked his head to the door at Echo. The younger clone shakily stood up and followed.

Tup pushed his food away, now not hungry. Comet saw the altercation and went to Tup's side. Tup scooted away from the others looking at Comet. The older of the two surveyed the youngest of Torrent.

"What was that about?" Comet asked, gripping his hand.

Tup ran a hand down his face. He shrugged, tossing one hand in the air, "I don't even know anymore. Echo's been acting strange, but _that_ was something new for sure."

Echo's hands shook as he walked behind Fives. Fives suddenly stopped. He whipped around and glare at Echo, "What the hell is wrong with you?!"

Echo flinched really hard. He was getting worked up and he couldn't take it anymore, he wanted to curl up in a hole. The floor suddenly became very interesting to him, he couldn't bear to see the disappointment in Fives. Fives took a breath, trying to calm down. Frightening Echo wouldn't do anything. He waited for an answer, but then looked Echo dead in the eye.

"Echo. You're scaring me," Echo felt the lowness of the blow. Fives knew the only way to make Echo talk was to make him feel guilty, but it wasn't his favorite method. Fives waited for Echo to break. But it didn't happen, so he continued.

"You are running yourself straight towards a ditch. And if you keep running, you're going to fall and fall hard."

Echo's sad gold eyes became a glare at him, "I'm fine. Leave me alone." He didn't want to accept the help, or pity that Fives had to offer.

Fives couldn't believe him. He was obviously not fine, he was bursting at the seams. He could deny it all he wanted but Fives could see right through him and had been able to since training. He knew how stubborn his brother could be, so he would make _Echo_ come to _him._

So Fives nodded, respected his wishes, and left. As Fives walked away Echo felt another domino fall, a domino that was going to crack his wall that he had built up, to keep people out.

* * *

Fives laid next to Rex, sighing, tension not leaving his body. Rex's gaze was nothing but sympathetic.

"He's freaking me out," he whispered very quietly so Echo could hear him.

"I know, baby," Rex knew it was bad, Fives never admits defeat or fear. Rex cupped his face and rubbed small circles on his cheekbones. Fives leaned into his hands, moving closer.

Rex brushed his lips on his head, "Is there anything I can do?"

Fives shook his head, looking at Echo for a moment, then turning back to Rex.

Echo hadn't heard the conversation, he had been too preoccupied with the replay of the Rishi Outpost going down. He felt alone in a room with two other people. His breathing speed up a fraction, he oddly felt really tired but alert at the same time. His hands shook, he heard the explosion in his ears. Tears leaked out of his eyes, falling rapidly. He held back a sob.

Fives and Rex heard an odd sound, like someone crying. Their first thought that it was Tup having an anxiety attack, but that didn't make sense because he was with Jesse, Hardcase, Kix, and some troopers from the 212th. Fives moved to his left to look at the only other person in the bunk room. 

Fives and Rex were partly right about their guess. It wasn't Tup who was having an anxiety attack, it was Echo. Echo was crying, not trying to hide it. His chest was heaving harshly like he couldn't get enough air, and he was shaking like a leaf. Fives hastily got up and while he was walking he told Echo, "In through your nose out through your mouth, Echo."

Fives jumped up the ladder, standing at the second to last bar. He took one of his younger brother's hands in his own.

"Just breathe, you can do it. Come on Echo, I'm right here," Fives soothed, but it was a futile attempt. Echo tried to breathe deeply but it was useless. He would break back down into sobs, which pulled at Fives heartstrings. Echo gripped his hand super tight.

Rex stood to the side of the bunk, "You're safe Echo. You're with me and Fives, you know us."

The two had a lot of practice with their brothers having panic or anxiety attacks. Sometimes it was shinnies that had a rough battle but most of the time it was Tup. 

Fives slowly took Echo's hands away from his head. Echo looked at him, eyes full of tears. Fives glanced at Rex, he was used to helping Tup, Echo would have different reactions to touch than Tup. He felt and saw Echo flinch when he moved his hand closer.

"Echo, can I touch you?" Echo's eyes blew slightly, unaware of how much fear he was showing.

Fives' eyes fluttered closed and whispered, "I'm not going to hurt you Echo. You know that."

Echo didn't move, he couldn't. Newfound guilt flooded through him, mixing with all his emotions. He cried harder, folding in on himself even more.

Fives bit his lip in contemplation. He put his hands under Echo's arms and lifted his brother towards him. Echo went ridged, not liking the fact that he was being moved. He eventually went with it and placed his head on Fives collarbone. Fives soothed Echo with his hand running through his hair.

"In and out, _Eyayah_. You can do it, you need to breathe if you don't want to pass out."

He was cut off by the door opening. The others were back and weren't aware of what was happening inside the bunk room. They stopped just inside the room. Kix steeped forward-looking at Rex in question. Fives answered for him. He snapped his fingers then pointed to the general vicinity of the door.

Kix understood what he wanted and he steered Tup out the door and the rest followed.

Echo calmed down after the others left the room, but he was still upset. "Shhhhh, shhhhhh. Eyayah shhhhhh," Fives murmured softly. Echo clutched his torso, curling into him. Fives moved so he was setting where Echo was. Rex reached up and patted Fives leg gently, before walking to his own bunk.

Echo's chest loosened tremendously and was able to breathe without hyperventilating. Fives continued to run his fingers through Echo's hair.

"What was that about?"

Echo put his face in Fives ribs, but Fives pulled him away to look at Echo.

"Look, I know you didn't want to talk about it, but you just had an anxiety attack. Now, you have no choice but to tell me. Anxiety attacks don't just appear out of nowhere."

Echo bit his lower lip, crossing his arms. He didn't meet Fives' eyes when he said, "You'll be either mad or disappointed and I don't know which one's worse."

Fives took Echo's chin and lifted up, "I'll _never_ be mad at you. So... what were you thinking about?"

"You know what," Echo gave a light glare. Fives frozen. Then sighed, pulling Echo close again. 

"I'm not going to tell you to let it go if that's what you're thinking. All I'm wondering is why you didn't come to me about this? I thought we knew each other better than this."

"We do Fives. I just... I didn't want to see the look in your eye when you heard that I still can't get over it..."

Fives sighed once again the firmly spoke, "Echo. There's nothing wrong with still being upset about the others. Is this about Hevy or all of them?"

"Hevy," he whispered.

"It wasn't your fault, Echo. There was-"

"That's not what I'm upset about," Echo interrupted loudly, "It's about that I yelled at him not even an hour before everything happened."

"...You two fought?"

"I didn't tell you because I didn't want you to say anything."

Fives didn't respond, just hugged him tighter. He met eyes with Rex, asking for silent permission to stay with him. Rex nodded, then left the room, most likely to see the others.

"Do you want me to stay?"

"Yes, Rayshe'a _,_ " Echo nodded. 

The two ARCs feel into sleep, both somewhat at peace. But it was good enough.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finished! Comet will be the center of next chapter.
> 
> What do you think? Requests?


	24. Chapter 24-ADHD Tendencies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Comet's ADHD starts acting up.

Comet recoiled at a sudden jab to his stomach. He turned to give a questioning look to the assaulter but was met with glares from Wolffe, Sinker, Boost, Ace, and Blitz, with Arks looking over Wolffe's shoulder but not glaring. Ace was the closest to him so he guessed Ace was the one who hit him. They were in the briefing room, but it had only started.

"What?" he whispered, sincerely innocent. Ace rolled his eyes a little and leaned in closer, "You spaced out. Again."

Comet cursed in Mando'a under his breath. He had been spacing out time after time, and it wasn't just annoying him, it was ticking his brothers off as well, but they knew he couldn't control it. Their attention was pulled back to the meeting and all Comet could focus on was not spacing out.

After the meeting was over, Wolffe was still glaring at him. Comet glared right back at Wolffe, daring him to bring up the fact that he isn't himself. Comet felt like Arks was analyzing from the corner of his eye and it was slightly pissing him off. But he took a breath to calm down, he understood that getting mad wouldn't do anything.

"Kid, come on," Ace called to him. Comet backed down from the even more intense glare that came from his older brother and went to Ace. The older of the two swung an arm around him, talking to Blitz who was next to him. Comet didn't exactly know where Ace was leading them but he guessed since it was close to lights out, they were heading to the barracks.

Blitz entered the code in the datapad, the doors retracting into the wall. Ace let him go after giving his shoulder a squeeze. He sat on a couch, sighing in frustration. His ADHD was acting up for some reason; he couldn't focus, he was spacing out, he was way more restless than usual and irritability was also a factor. It was very random to him, it was like his disorder was enhanced. Comet's ADHD had done this before but the reason behind it was because his stress levels were through the roof and lasted a short period of time.

The youngest Wolfpack member had been dealing with his predicament for about just shy of a week, and his brothers had started to notice (much to Comet's dismay). He would space out from the world then they would snap him back in with a smack or just their words. 

Arks was still staring at him. Comet was getting annoyed at the medic. Comet didn't meet his eyes, but Arks rolled his eyes and grabbed Comet by the bicep. Comet hung his head, not looking forward to the one-way conversation he was about to have.

Ark crossed his arms after gently pushing Comet against the wall.

 _What's wrong?_ _And don't say nothing._ Ark somewhat signed, Comet got the gist of what he was asking, it wasn't like Arks could sign every single word.

"Do I have to?" Comet almost whined. Arks jabbed him in the ribs. "Gah okay okay," Comet surrendered.

"I don't know. I keep spacing out and the others keep getting annoyed," Comet muttered to the ground, "I don't know if it's the ADHD or something else."

Arks thought for a moment then signed, _You might just be stressed. Go see your boyfriend tomorrow. If it's not stress, I'll consider stimulants for you._

Comet stared at the ceiling after re-entering the rec room. Wolffe was discussing something with the others and Comet wasn't entertaining the conversation. 

"-met... Comet!"

"What the hell do you want?" Comet snapped venomously. What he didn't realize was that he just snapped at his commander, and to make it worse, Wolffe, his older brother, is his commander. The others froze, wondering if they had heard him correctly.

'I am in so much trouble,' he mentally scolded himself.

Wolffe slowly turned both his eyes to his little brother. The others could see the murder in his eyes.

"Watch your mouth," he warned in a dangerously low tone.

Comet had already dug his grave, he decided to dig some more, "Make me."

In a Comet's defense, he was really on edge at that point and his older brothers weren't helping, they were just indirectly making it worse.

Wolffe looked absolutely done with Comet at that point, "Go to your room."

"Are you kidding me?! I'm not a child, Wolffe!"

"Now!" Wolffe bellowed, taking a step towards him. Comet jumped at the step and tore down the hallway. He slammed the code into the bunk room and immediately went to his bunk. He didn't think things could get worse than they already had.

Comet took Arks' suggestion and went to Tup in the morning after they had both finished training. Tup was laying in his bunk dosing off slightly. Comet knocked on the door frame, smiling softly, "You gettin' sleepily there? You just woke up, like three hours ago."

Tup smiled then buried his face in the pillow, patting the bed. Comet obliged, plopping down next to him. Tup moved so he was resting under Comet's chin. They talked in low tones, enjoying that their brothers were not there.

Tup then pulled away after a while. Comet was confused when Tup gave him a sad look and took his face in his hands.

"There's something going on with you, isn't there."

Comet stared at him, unaware of what to say. 

"How'd you know," he settled for.

"I know you better than you think. And you've been tapping your fingers for the past thirty minutes," Comet just became aware his fingers drumming on Tup's spine.

"So, you want to tell me what's wrong?" Tup got straight to the point. Comet felt Tup's hand slid to his back. Comet moved his shoulder in a half shrug.

"The others are pissed at me," he said vaguely. Tup pulled back even more, seemingly shocked, "What? Why?" 

"I keep spacing out and snapping. They're just getting annoyed now."

Tup looked concerned at the fact that Comet thought the Wolfpack was annoyed at _him_. Like Tup, he was the baby of the Wolfpack, they couldn't stay mad at him for long. Tup placed his hand, that was on his boyfriends back, on his hip and gently squeezed. Comet looked so sad and it made Tup feel bad. 

"Baby," Tup started sweetly, "I'm sure they're not mad at _you_. They're probably mad that you keep spacing out, not you."

Comet shook his head, "Oh no, they are royally pissed at me. Wolffe and I snapped at each other last night and I thought he was going to hit me, to be honest."

"Comet, what the hell?" Tup did not like that statement.

"No, he didn't do anything," he hastily added.

"Is this about your ADHD?"

Comet dipped his head silently, not willing to elaborate.

Tup sighed, "Have you talked to Arks about this?"

"I did, he said he might give me stims if it gets worse," Comet answered dejectedly.

"What's so bad about that? There's nothing wrong with stims," Tup reassured him.

"I know, but still."

Comet didn't feel like continuing the conversation. He turned into the pillow, still holding Tup. Tup's thin finger passed through his hair and pressed a kiss to his temple. Comet thought it was best to at least try and relax, seeing as he wouldn't have much time to do so on the mission.

* * *

Comet walked beside Ace and Blitz, not paying attention to where he was walking. The mission was done and they were heading to the LAAT. He wasn't exactly spacing out but he wasn't paying attention.

Blitz startled him by clutched his wrist, he jumped at the sudden touch. Blitz stroked the inside of his wrist comfortingly, identifying Comet's odd behavior. Blitz didn't say anything, just continued to hold his wrist. Ace was the sarcastic one out of the two but Blitz was the gentle, and kind one. Ace cared about him deep down, but didn't show it often, he reminded Comet of Copper. But Blitz was never one to shy away from physical and emotional comfort to Comet.

Comet then spaced out while walking, not knowing were Blitz or his feet for leading him anymore. His foot stepped on something that wasn't the ground, his foot sunk about two inches. A metallic sound was heard like gears were turning. 

"Mine!" Most of them yelled. Blitz pushed Comet out of the way. Comet hit the ground but not as hard as three of the clones. Three of them that were the closest to the blast were thrown multiple feet, one of them was Blitz. Arks jumped into action, making sure they were all still alive.

When he got to Blitz, Blitz was knocked out completely. Arks was more concerned at the blood pooling around his head. He gingerly lifted his head, his hair getting covered in blood. Comet backed away from him. Ace looked at his boyfriend, worried. 

Arks signed rapidly to Wolffe. Once they were finished they carefully lifted Blitz and continued to walk.

Another medic that was near the LAAT came over to him when they placed him on the ground. After looking for clearly for injuries the other medic spoke to Arks, "We have to get him on the cruiser now!"

Comet sluggishly entered the barracks. He collapsed onto the couch, on the verge of tears. He was afraid for Blitz, and he was also afraid of the reactions of his older brothers. Wolffe was already mad at him for the scene a few nights ago. And Ace, he didn't know what his brother would say.

Comet jumped, startled at the door suddenly opened. Wolffe appeared with Sinker and Boost. Comet's body physically shook with fear. Sinker was the one to look up at him. He frowned when he saw Comet jump up from where he sat.

"Com' you okay?" he said troubled by Comet's random fear.

"I'm so sorry! I didn't mean for it to happen, I am so so so sorry." Comet rapidly apologized, shocking all of them. Comet didn't stop apologizing, he kept shouting slowly backing into a wall, and sliding down. The three quickly rushed over to him, grabbing him into a hug.

Boost's hand found it's way into his baby brother's dark hair. Wolffe permitted the hysterical boy to cling to his arm while Sinker was whispering to him. Arks had stepped into the room, not knowing that Comet was having a breakdown. He slowly approached the four of them. Arks didn't sign anything, he just stood close by.

After Comet calmed down, he leaned completely on Wolffe. Arks gestured for Wolffe to get Comet to the couch. He obeyed and walked Comet to one of the couches. The younger boy sat down heavily, dropping his head on the Commander's shoulder. Wolffe ignored the others talking, his sole focus was on Comet.

"Pup, it's okay, it's okay," Wolffe gently said. 

Wolffe felt someone reach into his belt and grabbed what he guessed was his comm. Boost mouthed to him 'Tup' and walked to a different corner of the room. Wolffe would leave when Tup arrived but he wouldn't leave his brother at the moment.

Five minutes later Tup entered the barracks. He was given vague answers and didn't know what was happening. Boost left Sinker's side to talk to Tup.

"Hey, Comet's kind of upset right now. We thought you would be the best bet to help him," he explained.

Tup nodded dumbly, "Yeah of course."

Tup dropped to his knees in front of Comet. He glanced at Wolffe who was standing up. Wolffe fondly patted his shoulder before leaving the two of them alone. Tup sat there, not wanting to pressure him to talk. Comet was silently letting tears fall, that Tup was oblivious to. That was until a tiny sob left him.

"Com'?" Tup prompted. Comet shook his head, not wanting Tup to push it. Unluckily for him, Tup was from the 501st which makes them equally as stubborn. 

"Comet. Look at me," he ordered lightly. Comet slowly lifted his head, and Tup was able to see the visible tears.

"Ah love," Tup opened his arms and Comet all but fell into them, "You're okay baby, you're not in trouble with anyone."

Comet nodded and dried his eyes with the wrist of his blacks. Tup smiled and pulled him back into a quick hug.

"I love you," the younger teen told his boyfriend.

"Love you too."

They sat there for a while, not talking just sitting. They were mostly waiting for Ace to come back so Comet could talk to him but Tup was also attempting to distract him. They guessed Ace was with Blitz in the medbay. Comet was hopeful that Blitz was okay by the fact that Arks was not in the medbay with him.

Ace walked in, thankful not covered in blood as he had been before. He stopped when he laid golden eyes on Comet.

"You okay?"

Comet looked confused, "Wait, you're not yelling at me right now."

Ace also became confused, "Why would I yell at ya kid?"

"Because Blitz was the one who pushed _me_ out of the way," Ace nodded understanding what he was saying, "It's my fault your _cyare_ is hurt."

Ace held up a hand to stop him, "Comet. Stop. This is in no way your fault. Blitz doesn't blame you and I don't blame you."

Comet didn't believe him.

"C'mere Pup," and at the call Comet lunged for Ace who caught him easily.

"You're okay, I don't hate or blame you."

Arks held Comet's arm steady as he pressed the plunger down on the hypo. Comet flinched at the needle pressing into him. Arks let go of his arms and threw the empty hypo away. He turned back to Comet who was sitting on the bed and had a stern look on his face.

_Don't you dare use more stims than I have told you to use. Understood?_

Comet nodded, but little did he know he would break that promise. 

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not my best work but oh well. I have been trying to balance many things as I am recently starting a WIP of my own. I'm sorry if there were spelling errors, I didn't have time to read some of it over.
> 
> What do you think? Requests?


	25. Chapter 25-Overdose

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes stimulants aren't always going to help.

Wolffe blinked his eyes open. He sighed lightly, standing and cracking his back. He heard someone snort behind him. He turned around unamused to glare at the person who laughed. Sinker was the guilty party, his hand was trying to muffle even more laughter.

“You think you’re soooo funny don’t you?” Wolffe grumbled. 

“I don’t think I’m funny. I just think it’s hilarious that you’re twenty-three but act like an angry old man.”

Wolffe shook his head and gave a harsh throw of his pillow at Sinker. Sinker squeaked and dodged the pillow. The banter continued as they got ready for training. They migrated to the rec room, sitting with others that were also awake. 

Blitz and Ace soon walked out of the non-alpha bunkroom, with Ace slightly supporting him. Blitz’s ankle had taken a beating when he got thrown from the landmine two weeks before. He was able to walk but sometimes it hurts him.

Sinker wrinkled his nose in pity, “Ankle still bad?”

Despite his pain, Blitz smiled lightheartedly, “Just a little bit. Nothing too bad.”

Wolffe’s expression became serious when he spoke to Blitz, “I don’t want you training if you’re in pain. That’s an order.” Arks nodded in agreement when Wolffe glanced at him, having overheard the conversation.

“Yes sir.”

Boost and Comet came out walking side by side minutes later. Arks made eye contact with the youngest and tossed a hypo with stims to him. Comet caught it effortlessly and started rolling the blacks on his left arm up.

Everyone was used to this altercation, Arks had been giving him stimulants every day to keep his ADHD in check until he could lay off the stims. The only reason Comet agreed to use them was that he didn’t want to be the reason anyone got hurt again. And Tup also convinced him to take the offer from Arks.

Comet had enough practice with the hypo to not feel the pinch of the needle. It was very easy for him now. So when he administered the stimulant he didn’t even flinch. He passed time waiting for the drug to kick in with his brothers, talking and joking around.

The same night, Comet was looking at the hypo laying in his hand. He had already taken one today and Arks had specifically told him to take one a day.

But he was afraid if his ADHD acted up again, he won’t be able to control it. He gradually pulled his sleeve up and hovered the needle over his arm.

He gave a mental ‘fuck it’ and pushed it down. He promised himself it was a one-time thing.

It was  _ not _ a one-time thing. For the next five days, Comet had been getting quadruple the original dosage, it was taking a toll on his body. It was getting harder for him to breathe, and at the current moment, he felt super nauseous.

The Wolfpack was in the bunk room, not quite lights out yet. Comet on curled on his side, trying to find a position that doesn’t strike pain in his stomach.

Wolffe noticed Comet’s discomfort, “Com’, you okay?”

“Feeling sick.”

Wolffe stood from the bed and crossed to his youngest’s. He sat on the edge closest to Comet’s head. Comet shifted closer to him. Wolffe stroked his shoulder blades gently and met eyes with Sinker. He pointed to the bin in the corner of the room.

Sinker retrieved the bin and placed it quietly in front of Comet. Not even a minute after Sinker placing it in front of him, Comet hunched over it and gagged.

Vomit shot out of his mouth, acid burning his throat raw. He coughed and gagged even more. Wolffe’s hand made circles on his back as he pushed Comet’s hair away from his eyes.

Comet finally caught his breath and leaned on Wolffe.

“You think you’re done?”

“Yeah, for now at least.”

Comet was able to fall asleep, his stomach finally calmed down enough to do so. He awoke in the morning, feeling restless already.

He looked down at the hypo he had placed on the bed. He didn’t even hesitate when he grabbed it. He thought it wouldn’t make a difference, Arks was going to give him one anyway if he asked for it.

As he stood up from taking the stims, he swayed violently. His knees buckled and he crashed to the ground.

* * *

Comet’s head felt fuzzy. He was struggling to stay conscious if you could even call it that. He could hear the beat of a heart monitor, something sticking into the crook of his elbow, and the smell of antiseptic all gave him clues that he was in the medbay.

He ultimately cracked his gold eyes open, sensitive to the bright lights on the ceiling. His body felt weak, and his stomach was turning somewhat. 

He groaned as he shifted his body.

“Easy easy.” a voice said to his left. Helix appeared in his line of vision, placing a hand on his shoulder to keep him still.

“What happened?” Comet croaked out.

Kix also came over and both of them started checking his vitals. They purposely ignored his question, sharing looks. Comet didn’t like the glances that passed between the two medics.

“What. Happened.”

Kix stopped his fiddling to slowly turn to him. His appearance was unreadable and Comet didn’t know how to take that.

“You overdosed,” was the simple, blunt answer that Kix gave him. Comet felt his heart  _ drop _ . Overdose was bad, very  _ very _ bad. If word got out to the Admiral he could be sent back to Kamino for reconditioning. He wouldn’t remember anything or anyone. Torrent, Ghost, Tup, the Wolfpack - all gone.

“Please tell me you’re lying,” he whispered, closing his eyes for a few moments.

Helix jumped in this time, “We’re not lying, Comet. We wouldn’t lie about this.” His tone had an underlining disappointment that made Comet feel like a kid that just got yelled at. He couldn’t believe the words they were saying. 

“The Wolfpack found you lying in the bunk room. Barely breathing. Then they brought you here.” Kix added.

Comet thought very hard about what he had done before he supposedly blacked out. His memory was foggy but he did remember taking a stim that Arks had given him that he wasn’t supposed to use, it was for a dire situation. He remembered taking it even though he recognized it was wrong and he shouldn’t have done it. 

He completely frozen, staring blankly ahead. He heard the door slide open and it knocked him out of his stare. The Wolfpack was entering along with their General.

‘Oh shit. I’m in trouble now.’

Comet pulled his body up into a sitting position and crossed his legs. He didn’t look up at his brothers or father. He just hoped he didn’t get in too much trouble. 

“What the hell were you thinking?” 

Comet’s head snapped up, he didn’t think those words would come out of any of their mouths with so much anger behind it. Sinker was the one who hissed those words at him, glare so full of disappointment and frustration. 

“W-what-?” he stuttered.

“You know exactly what he’s talking about, answer the fucking question.” Boost interrupted. Comet stared at him dumbly, at a loss for words. He looked to Wolffe for help but his older brother scoffed in what sounded like disgust, “Don’t even look at me for help. You know what you did. So I’ll ask you again for Boost. What went through your thick skull to make you think your poor choice was okay?”

Comet took in the words and started to understand what he was saying. He honestly thought Comet overdosed on purpose.

“I didn’t do it on purpose! Why would you think it wasn’t an accident?” 

None of them budged, not even Plo. Wolffe leaned forward, “Because I raised you better than that.”

Comet felt Wolffe’s words twist the knife even more. Wolffe was correct, he did raise the Pup of the Wolfpack better than to do drugs because he knew the consequences of using drugs for unintended purposes. Plo Koon maybe is his figurative father (and maybe legal guardian soon) but Wolffe raised him. Sinker and Boosts were hesitant to get close to the newly seventeen-year-old when he came. The had already lost their  _ entire _ battalion, they didn’t think they could lose another brother that they were close to, especially a baby brother. But Wolffe knew if no one would be a brother to him, he would do it himself. And Comet understood that, but he didn’t want Wolffe to lecture him even more about the way he was raised.

He turned on his side away from all of them.

“Go away. Now,” he ordered, not caring he was being rude. Most of him wanted his brothers to leave. But when he heard footsteps walk away without hesitation he felt something inside of him break. He brought a hand up to stifle his crying and tried to hide it. 

Two days Arks approached him in the medbay. He checked his vitals with slight hostility Comet had never seen before. He knew not to interact with his brother or it might get messy.

_ I’m discharging you _ .

It was ironic that Comet could hear the clipped tone of the words even though Arks didn’t speak. 

He quickly stood up and walked out the door. He guessed news didn’t travel around about his overdose because Ghost, Bly, and Ponds’ companies all greeted him nicely. He made up an excuse for being in the med then felt his comm go off.

_ We need to talk. _

The message was from Tup. He could feel fear rising inside of him and he was acutely aware of his heart pounding. This conversation could go in many ways, and he did not want to think of a few of the outcomes.

“I gotta go, see you around,” he finished the conversation.

“See you, kid.”

Comet trembled as his hand hovered over the 501st barracks keypad. He slowly typed in the number code. Torrent was scattered around the room. He was surprised when Kix gave him a small smile.

Rex looked up from Fives who was laying in his lap, “He’s in the bunk room.”

Even though he played the pronoun game he knew the ‘he’ Rex mentioned was his boyfriend. Before he entered the room he paused and looked back at Torrent.

“He pissed?”

“Very. But knowing who he has for parents,” Hardcase looked to Fives and Rex, “I wouldn’t be surprised.” The statement insinuated that they knew about the overdose.

“Does he think I did it on purpose?”

Kix frowned and looked at him directly, “What do you mean? Are you saying it was an accident?”

Comet nodded, hoping that at least somebody would believe him.

“Kix, I’m smarter than to use drugs to get high. I didn’t mean for it to happen.” Kix went into deep thought and Comet took that as his queue to enter the room. 

His boyfriend was standing and leaning on the rail of his bunk, arms crossed. His eyes were clouded. Comet slowly walked to him. Anger was rolling off of him in waves; Comet could feel an outburst coming, and it happened sooner than he thought. As soon as he got close to him, Tup snapped.

“I am so fucking mad at you,” Tup said extremely cold. Comet didn’t interrupt, he would allow him to get all his emotions out, then he could tell him what happened.

“I am. You are so stupid, I can’t believe you right now. I thought you were going to  _ die _ , Comet.”

Comet looked down guiltily, upset that his boyfriend thought the overdose would kill him. Tup was right, it could have killed him. 

Tup’s eyes were full of pain when he spoke, “I thought you were smarter than this. You know better than to abuse drugs.”

That’s when Comet barged in. “Hold on, you were the one who convinced me to take them in the first place,” he said in an accusing voice.

“Yes, Comet. I did tell you to take them but not like this!” Tup threw his arms out for emphasis. 

“It’s not my fault! Why are you blaming me?! I didn’t mean to!”

“I don’t give a shit! It’s your body, you choose what you take and don’t take!”

“Yeah and I choose to take them! What is your god damn point Tup?!”

Tup huffed a laugh, “You didn’t use them correctly!”

“And who’s fault is that?  _ You’re _ the one who wanted me to take them, you said it yourself!” 

Tup looked at him incredulously, “Are you serious? Are you seriously blaming me?! I told you to take them to help you, not this!”

Comet fell silent. Both of them were close to crying, they had never argued like this before.

“Fuck you, Tup. I didn’t mean for it to happen,” Comet wasn’t thinking when he said the sentence.

Tup glare intensified to a point past rage, uncharacteristic for the kind teen. Comet realized what he said to Tup and he deflated.

“I didn’t mean-” Comet tried to reach for him but Tup backed away. Comet’s hand dropped when he steeped away.

When Tup spoke next, it wasn’t filled with pointed anger at Comet, it was full of conviction, “Everything I have ever said to you, I meant. I love you, and I would never set you up for failure. You set yourself up Comet, not me. But I can’t love you if you fail yourself. I’m not going to watch you die for a stupid reason. I can’t do that to myself.”

For the past few days, Comet had felt like he had been slowly sinking into a dark sea. And at the hidden statement that Tup put in his rant, he knew he was completely submerged in the icy, dark water that threatened to destroy him, and change him into a completely different person.

“I didn’t mean to, please believe me,” Comet whispered a last endeavor to get Tup to understand that it was an accident.

“How can I? Give me a reason.”

“Because I love you! I wouldn’t lie about this,” Comet sat on Tup’s bunk in anguish. Tup slowly paced giving them both a minute to calm down so they don’t make any rash choices.

“Please believe me…,” Comet finally begged, “Please.”

Tup stopped in his tracks. Comet very rarely begs and if he does it’s for something important. Comet always felt weak when he begged. Tup hesitated and sat on Fives’ old bunk. Comet began crying but wiped the tears away.

“If you think,” he started softly, “That I would want to be recommissioned, that I would want to forget everyone, forget  _ you, _ you’re wrong. I love you and I don’t want to leave you.”

Tup gave Comet the benefit of the doubt and started contemplating about the overdose. It wasn’t like Comet to do something so reckless on purpose. Tup sighed after thinking for a minute. It made sense now. Comet loved his brothers and he wouldn’t make a stupid decision that would take him away from them. Tup felt like a  _ dikut  _ for not believing him.

Comet was full-on crying but not sobbing, he sounded like a puppy that was crying for its mother, but right now he was crying his lover; it was close enough. Tup sank to his knees facing the Wolfpack teenager. Tup took one of his hands in his own and squeezed. Comet’s eyes shot up in surprise but didn’t mind the affection. 

Comet leaned forward into Tup’s frame. The shorter boy’s arm encircled around his back and brought them as close as possible.

“Shhhhh, shhhhh. I believe you Com’ika, I believe you,” he said calmly, “Don’t cry babe, there’s nothing to be upset about now. I believe you.”

Comet couldn’t stop crying. All his pain, sadness, and rejection came spilling out at once. 

Tup rocked back and forth to calm him, “You’re going to get sick, baby. You have to calm down and breathe.”

“I’m sorry,” Comet whimpered, “I didn’t mean what I said.”

Tup placed his cheek on Comet hair, “I know love. I’m sorry too.”

Comet subconsciously nuzzled closer to Tup, causing him to smile warmly. Usually, Tup is the one being held but now it was Comet.

“I’m here baby, just breathe.”

Comet managed a teary laugh, “You know I don’t enjoy that nickname.”

“I know, that’s why I say it,” Tup teased.

Comet laid in his arms, listening to his advice and taking deep breaths. Tup continued a rhythm of stroking his hair softly.

“Anything else you want to talk about?” Tup gave him a chance to speak his mind.

Comet was waiting for him to say something like that, “The others don’t believe me… Wolffe is so mad at me.”

Tup nodded and hugged him tighter, “He might be mad at himself.”

“How so?”

“Well, he is your older brother. He might feel guilty for not noticing something was wrong. I mean when my anxiety started, Fives and Rex felt so guilty when I would try and hide the attacks. They felt like they should’ve known my actions better.”

“But Fives and Rex are different,” Comet said softly, “They’re your parents.”

Tup was about to object about the parent thing, he would never admit that out loud, but choose not to. Tup looked down at his boyfriend, who wasn’t looking at him. He debated calling Wolffe but he didn’t want to pressure Comet. So he settled for asking him instead.

“Do you want to talk to him?”

“Not really but I don’t think I have a choice.” 

Tup stood up, pulling Comet with him, “Come on. I’ll walk with you.”

Comet didn’t type the code in. Tup placed a hand on his hip, “Don’t make me do it for you.”

When Comet typed the key in, Tup hugged him from behind and left. The door glided open and Comet’s eye fell on the couch were the Wolfpack, Arks, and Plo were surprising sitting.

Wolffe looked up at him when he stepped through the doorway.

“Sit down.”

“Why? So you can yell at me again?” Comet said being stubborn.

Wolffe sighed tiredly, “Comet please.”

Comet obeyed a sat. They waited in science.

“We have to ask. Did you do it on purpose?”

“No,” Comet answered for felt like the hundredth time.

Boost nodded, “Okay. We believe you.”

Comet blinked in shock, not expecting them to see the truth.

“Kix gave us a talk. He said it was accidental, and that you didn’t mean to do it.”

Comet dawned upon the fact that Torrent had been less than fifty feet away, they would have been able to hear the argument.

“Comet, why did you take more in the first place,” his father gently asked.

Comet shrugged, “I didn’t want what happened to Blitz happen again.”

Wolffe sighed lightly, “You still feel guilty about Biltz, don’t you.” It wasn’t a question, Wolffe pointed out a fact.

“Comet, I thought we talked about this.” a voice from the hallway leading to the bunks startled Comet. Ace was leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, and Blitz was looking at Ace, confused. Ace was the one who spoke, tone not as sarcastic as it usually was.

Comet dropped his head in disappointment in himself. Ace and Blitz sit on the couch that Comet was on, opposite of the others. Blitz was able to guess that Comet blamed himself for what happened by the signals Ace was giving him

Biltz tenderly gripped the teens downward chin and lifted it. Comet’s golden eyes didn’t meet his until Blitz tapped his finger. 

“It wasn’t your fault, Comet,” he said gently.

“I know Blitz but still. You got hurt because I wasn’t paying attention-”

Blitz cut him off by clasping his wrist, “Comet, I was the one who threw  _ you _ . I decided to push you out of the way, not you. I don’t blame you. I don’t blame anyone except the  _ oisk’ika _ who set the mine.”

The youngest responded with a dip of his head and saw Arks shift forward.

Arks signed slowly to make sure Comet would understand completely,  _ I am still going to give you stimulants, but only when you need it. And we’ll do it in the medbay. Deal? _

Comet smiled the smallest bit, “Deal."

* * *

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am honestly surprised by how fast I finished this. Let me know who you want to more of. Do you want to see more Fives and Rex, Echo, Ghost? Name it!
> 
> What do you think?


	26. Chapter 26-Panic Attack of a Different Origin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wooley is struggling after a mission gone wrong

Wooley poked his food with his fork. He lifted his fork to his mouth and chewed slowly. Everyone else was done eating and talking with some of the other battalions. The 501st and the 104th were talking with Ghost or at least everyone but Wooley who wasn’t talking. Wooley pushed his food away and folded his arms on the table.

Ghost had just come back from a mission on Saleucami. Grievous escape the grasp of the 212th and most importantly escaped from Kenobi. They had scouted the whole terrain of where the pods had crashed into the planet. Wooley was assigned to one of the scouting teams and it didn’t end well, but the others didn’t know that fully.

A certain member was still a little shaken at the fact that Rex almost died after being shot close to his heart. Fives was attached to Rex’s side and wasn’t leaving. Rex still had nerve damage so Kix put him in a sling again even if Rex protested. 

“Rex, how the hell did you manage to get shot?” Cody teased his litter brother who rolled his eyes. Rex flicked him off.

Cody chuckled, “No I’m serious Rex’ika.”

“We were on the speeders, I was taking point. The commando’s sniped me and it missed my heart barely.” Rex said plainly. 

Waxer and Boil groaned, “You have no sense of suspense, Rex.”

Tup sitting with his legs on the seat and leaning his back on Comet’s chest. Comet was drumming his thumb on his leg, both talking with Boil and Waxer. Tup observed that Wooley was detached from everything and he saw a pained expression on his face. The expression was one that no one could see except for Tup because he had worn that same expression many times before.

Tup smiled sadly. He knew Wooley was hiding something deep down and he didn’t know what to do. He saw his sunken posture and sad, tired eyes. If it weren’t for the hair and coloring of the armor, Tup would have thought he was looking in a mirror before an anxiety attack. And he couldn’t sit around and watch it happen.

Tup took his first knuckle and tapped it to Comet’s shoulder. Comet looked down and waited for Tup to speak but still was hearing in the conversation.

“I’ll be back in a sec.” He stood up and walked to the end of the table that his brother was at. Wooley barely looked up when he sat down. Tup copied Wooley’s position; arms on the table and folded with their heads resting on them.

“What’s up?”

Wooley shook his head like he was saying ‘nothing’.

Tup rested a hand on his bicep, “Wooley, I know better than anyone, that you  _ can’t _ bury the pain. You have to let it out eventually.”

Wooley was about to say something but Tup cut him off, “You don’t have to talk about it now, at least not to me. Just, remember what I said.”

Wooley nodded but didn’t tell or say anything.

“If things become too much for you, you have to go to Cody, Helix I don’t care. But you have to go to someone. Can you at least promise me that?

“I promise,” the answer was delayed but Tup was happy he gave a verbal answer.

Tup gave Wooley his space, going back to his boyfriend.

* * *

Wooley sat dejectedly on the rec room couch. The youngest of Ghost wasn’t participating in the conversation. His brothers were bantering lightly, not  _ completely _ oblivious to Wooley’s quiet demeanor but gave him space. They had noticed he had been off for a few days but they knew he preferred to figure things out on his own.

Cody glanced at Wooley’s hand which was clenched into a fist. He swiftly left the conversation he was in to go to Wooley. He hunched down so he was lower than eye level with him, and gripped his hand in his firm one. 

Wooley’s sad eyes lifted, gazing into Cody’s, hair falling in front of his eyes. The Commander felt like he just got punched in the gut. He had never seen his little brother so sad, seeing as Wooley was always chipper and happy. 

Wooley squeezed his hand like he was trying to break it. Cody let him clutch his hand, it didn’t hurt that much. He refrained from speaking not wanting to trigger anything. He brushed Wooley’s soft hair away from his eyes. Tears sprang in the younger boy’s eyes but he blinked them away. Cody’s hand drifted back down to his hands.

“Why are you upset, Wooley?”

Wooley shrugged, clenching his eyes shut, “I dunno.”

Cody gave him a gentle pointed look, “I find that hard to believe Wool’.”

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Wooley settled for, pushing back even more tears, “Please. Don’t have me talk about it.”

Cody leaned back on his heels. He considered for a moment, wanting to talk to Wooley about what was bothering him. He eventually dropped it and nodded, “I would never make you talk about it if you didn’t want to.”

Wooley dropped his head again a single tear falling. Cody wiped it away with a pad of his thumb quickly and quietly. Wooley flinched away subconsciously but then leaned into his hand. Cody looked at him sadly and saw Helix move out of the corner of his eye. He turned to him seeing the same look on his face. Helix gestured with his hand to the hallway that leads to the bunks, suggesting that Cody take him to their room. 

Cody lifted Wooley by the arms. Wooley made a small noise of protest that made Cody smile the tiniest bit. Wooley followed begrudgingly, folding his arms. Cody kept a hand on his lower back the whole way to the bunks.

Cody opened the door and lead Wooley to his bunk. Wooley climbed the latter with Cody following. Wooley folded into a tiny ball on his side. Cody put a hand on his thigh, noticing how he flinched once again. 

“Wooley, are you sure you don’t want to talk about it?”

Said boy nodded unconvincingly, tears falling. Cody sighed gripping his leg lightly.

“Do you want me to leave?” Cody gave him an option to be alone, only after scanning the room for anything that could hurt his brother.

“Yes,” Wooley said waterly. 

“Okay, the others and I will be in the other room.”

Cody left, not wanting to leave his distressed brother but he did anyway. Wooley turned on his other side, staring at the wall. Cody took one last look at him before turning around the corner.

When Cody re-entered the common room, Waxer piped up, “Is the kid okay?”

Cody sat on the couch next to Helix, “I don’t think so. He was on the verge of sobbing but he wanted to be alone.”

“You left him alone?” Boil asked, protectively.

“I made sure there were no guns in there, Boil. I promise,” Cody swore to his brother, understanding that he was concerned Wooley would hurt himself like Copper from the Wolfpack did.

It was Helix’s turn to speak, “Did he say anything about what made him upset?”

Cody rubbed his fingers across his forehead, “No, but he did flinch when I touched him but then leaned into me after.”

Helix looked very confused, “That sounds like him being touched starved.”

Waxer’s head whipped up in shock. He had touched the nineteen-year-old a few days before and he didn’t react the same way, “What the hell? I touched him the other day and he was fine.”

Helix shrugged, not having a solid answer, “It might be because of the battle.”

Understanding dawned on them. The battle wasn’t horrible but Wooley had been with a different squad the went out for scouting.

Cody reached for a datapad on the table and scrolled through the casualties of the mission. He scrolled until he found names that sounded familiar. He showed the ‘pad to everyone else.

Boil pointed out, “Those were all with Wooley. And I didn’t see them come back with him.”

Helix huffed lightly, “Poor kid. Was he leading the squad, Cody?”

Cody nodded mutely. Everyone stayed silent as well. They would have to wait for Wooley to come to them.

Wooley broke his stare from the wall by his skin flushing. He kicked the covers off and sat up. He put his arms on his knees, his skin feeling hot. His breathing was odd; it was short and choppy and it was starting to scare him. He didn’t want to die.

He stayed in his position, starting different, not a good different. He was aware of his body moving but he didn’t feel like he was the one moving them. He registered him walking out the room but he didn’t feel like it. Before he knew it he was in the doorway of the rec room.

“Wooley?” someone’s voice broke through the haze. He snapped back to reality, now able to feel his body movements. He was also very aware of the tears streaming down his face. 

“Cody,” he whimpered, wanting his older brother. He felt strong arms hold him close to their chest. He wrapped his arms around his brother’s waist, breaking down into tears in his arms.

“Shhhh, shhh. I’m here Wooley. Why’re you crying, Love?” Cody spoke softly. Wooley tried to speak but his sobs covered them. Another person came around to the other side of him. 

“You don’t have to talk but at least nod or shake your head,” Helix commanded kindly, “Are you in pain?”

Wooley nodded yes, feeling tightness in his chest that was clawing at him. He pointed to his ribcage, the general area of his pain.

“Okay, I think it’s just your brain making you think that but keep an eye on the pain kiddo.”

Cody squeezed him tighter, feeling his heart contract at the crying of his brother. He patted a rhythm on his spine, giving Wooley something to focus on. He could feel the shakes in Wooley’s hand as he gripped his top blacks. 

“Calm down, calm down,” Cody cooed in his ear, running his fingers through his hair. Wooley didn’t stop crying, muffled by Cody’s blacks. Cody looked to the ceiling, praying that it would be over soon.

Helix put a hand the back of the teenager’s neck, stroking the baby hair of his neck. He was also sneakily checking his pulse to make sure it wouldn’t go too high.  Cody continued to pat him on the back lightly, whispering reassurances in his ear. Wooley attempted to take a deep breath but it ended with him sobbing again. He felt his chest heaving against Cody’s who’s was steady. His throat was starting to hurt from the sobbing.

“ _ Ad’ika _ . You  _ need _ to calm down and breathe. You’re going to have a panic attack.” Helix said more firmly but still gentle. 

“I can’t,” Wooley simply answered, moving so he was flush against Cody.

Cody gripped one of his arms to ground him, “You have to try or Helix is going to give you downers. And that isn’t going to be fun.”

Wooley whimpered and whined every time he almost got a hold of himself. Cody rubbed circles on his back, hushing him. 

Waxer and Boil shifted to a closer seat, waiting until Wooley at least stopped gasping for breath, which he did eventually.

Wooley’s chest still heaved as he quieted down, and continued clutching onto Cody. Cody didn’t pull back just yet. Helix pulled his hand back. The oldest brushed Wooley’s hair back, wiping the tear tracks away.

“ _ Udesii  _ Wooley.” Boil said from his spot two feet away. Wooley cuddled closer to Cody, burrowing his face in his neck. Cody leaned against the back of the couch, supporting most of Wooley’s weight. Boil reached up and settled a hand on his hip.

“What was that about?” Cody asked considerately. Wooley whimpered again, not wanting to dive into what made him upset. 

Waxer hit Cody on the shoulder hard, “Really  _ vod _ , really?”

Cody rocked side to side, wincing, “Sorry sorry, I won’t ask. But don’t work yourself up again.”

Wooley pulled his arms back but still stayed against Cody’s collarbone. Cody pulled him back. Wooley’s eyes were a little red but he looked okay for the most part. 

“Come, let’s go back to the bunks,” Cody offered. Wooley followed, hand slipping down to Cody’s. The others chuckled at his action, finding it cute. Cody smiled at the smaller hand that slipped into his, tugging his hand.

Woolley hesitated at the ladder and turned back to his older brother. Cody knew what he was asking without words. Cody tugged his hand once again and dragged Wooley along. Cody sat Wooley down to help him take off the bottom half of his armor. Cody followed after and climbed into bed with him.

He pulled Wooley’s back against his chest. He ran a thumb over his brother’s sternum. Wooley decided to do the breathing technique that Helix always helped Cody with. Breathe in  for four seconds. Hold it for seven. Let out for eight. Cody had a shadow of a smile on his face, he could tell by the movements of his chest what he was doing. 

Soon Wooley drifted into sleep. Cody didn’t fall into sleep, it was still early. He mused to himself, thinking about a way to help him. But he knew he couldn’t help him if he didn’t talk. But even if he didn’t tell him, he should know his baby brother better. It was a whirlwind.

An hour later the others came in, quietly of course. Helix gave him a look that was asking if the upset boy was okay for the time being. Cody provided a firm nod.

The others couldn’t fall asleep, they would almost be asleep but then they would steal glances at Wooley who was still next to Cody and then would snap awake. And the snapping awake could be said the same for Wooley.]

Wooley suddenly jerked awake, like he was falling in a dream and it makes you physically react. He jumped out of Cody’s arms and stood up, gripping his hair. Everyone froze when Wooley started pacing. Cody’s arms were held out to the side as they had been when Wooley broke out of them.

Wooley paced while the others were talking in rapid tones.

“What the hell was that?” Waxer asked again, the second time that night. The three of them moved to Cody.

Helix smacked him on the head, “What does it look like to you  _ di’kut _ ? Nightmare.”

Wooley gripped his head, tears starting to stream down his face. He felt sick, his stomach flipping. He felt dizzy but not at the same time.

His breathing became shallow. Helix gave Cody an urgent look. Cody went to Wooley but the teenager jumped back.

“Hey hey hey, it’s just me. Whatever you’re seeing isn’t real.”

Wooley began sobbing harshly, much more loudly than previously before. He couldn’t catch his breath and he was starting to feel like he was dying. And he didn’t want to die. He didn’t want to leave. 

“I want to stay!” he yelled, scaring his brothers. Boil jumped about five feet, hearing the pain in his voice.

Waxer stood beside Cody and softly said, “You’re not going away Wooley. No one’s taking you anywhere.”

Wooley still cried, not caring about his brother’s words. His breathing was still rapid and sharp. Helix took note of it and he didn’t like it, “Wooley, calm down now kiddo. You’re going to make yourself have a panic attack.”

Wooley did hear that one. He didn’t want to have a panic attack; he had never had one before and he wanted to keep it that way. But fate was not on his side.

Wooley was sobbing even more. He couldn’t breathe and he was scared and panicking. Cody tried to reach for him but he quickly stopped when Wooley backed away. Wooley sat on the floor in a ball, shaking. Cody crouched, three feet away still.

“Love, I have to help you, you’re working yourself off.”

Wooley shook his head, whimpering.

Cody finally became desperate, “Let me help you!”

Wooley’s head snapped up. He looked at Cody like he was just seeing him. He jerkily nodded. Cody scooted closer and held his arms open. Wooley immediately went into his arms and wrapped his arms around his neck.

“Shhhhh. Love calm down. We’re right here.”

Boil sat cross-legged on the floor, stroking his shoulder, “You’re okay, you’re okay,” he whispered.

Helix and Waxer followed suit. They sat in a circle around him, placing a hand on a section of his body to let him know they were there for him. Wooley continued to cry with Cody pushing on his diaphragm to get him to breathe. 

Cody rocked side to side, hoping and praying that he was doing something right. Rex and Torrent were the ones with the experience with panic and anxiety attacks alike.

“Y-you’re doing fine,” Wooley stuttered out. Cody blinked in shock.

“Did I seriously say that out loud?” Cody groaned.

Wooley just squeezed tighter, no longer crying anymore. Cody pressed a kiss to his head, “You okay now?”

Wooley glanced down when he nodded, “Yeah, the mission was kind of messing with me.”

Helix gave him a look, “We know, kid. And it wasn’t your fault. But let’s keep the panic attacks on the bare minimum.  _ Please. _ ”

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fives and Rex will be up next. And if you have requested something a while ago, don't worry I'm working my way through my list.
> 
> What do you think?


	27. Chapter 27-The Pain of Being a Parent

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rex has a meeting with the Generals, and he leaves FIves alone. What happens that makes Fives feel like shit?

Fives was aroused from sleep by fingers running through his hair. He groaned into the sheets, not wanting to wake up.

“ _Time to get up_ ,” Rex spoke to him in Mando’a

“ _No thank you_ ,” he responded. 

“Too bad, up,” Rex ordered in his Captain’s voice.

Both of them stood up, Rex cracked his body. Fives tried to hide a snort of laughter but failed. Rex glared heatlessly at him.“Sooner or later this will be you.”

“Oh gods, we can’t have that. He’ll never stop complaining,” a snappy tone came from their left. Tup was the one who said it, who had a smirk on his face.

“Very funny, Tup.” Fives shot him a weird look, “You’re up early.”

Tup responded with a nod to the floor, smirk falling. “Couldn’t sleep.”

Rex shared a look at Fives. They did not like that explanation and his reaction to the question. The only time Tup had problems sleeping was because of nightmares. They would have heard him or he was finding a way to hide it. Not to mention he also looked tired.

“Is there a reason for it,” Fives asked.

Tup shook his head. “Unfortunately no. Just couldn’t shut my brain up.”

They didn’t look convinced, but Rex propped his shoulder against the rail that led to Echo’s bunk. “You want to talk about it?”

“No thank you,” Tup responded quietly.

Rex patted him on the back and he pulled Tup along with Fives and him.

“Let us know if you change your mind.”

They were heading to the training room when Rex’s comm went off. His eyes swept from left to right as he read the message; and then he groaned lightly.

“What?” Fives asked in amusement.

“It’s too early to deal with Skywalker’s crazy plans.”

Hardcase looked at him, also amused. “You are usually all for his crazy-ass plans.”

“Don’t get me wrong, I trust him, but it’s way too early for this.”

Fives laughed and pressed a kiss to Rex’s cheek. “See you later.”

The rest of them continued their trek to the training room. The 104th and 212th were already there, starting to spar. Wolffe and Cody were missing, of course, seeing as they already headed down to the meeting that Rex was in. 

Comet was on the mats with Blitz, aiming a roundhouse kick at his chest. Blitz caught his foot and rolled his eyes. “Really?”

He threw Comet’s leg up, which caused Comet to slam down onto his back. 

“Worth a shot,” he groaned.

Tup shook his head with a smile at his boyfriend’s poor choice. The Torrent members headed back to where the rest of their battalion was. They got a few claps on the back in greeting, mostly to the youngest of them.

Blitz finally got pinned to the floor by Comet, and Comet shot Blitz a malicious smirk. When he stood up, he somehow managed to find Tup leaning against the wall; and Comet winked at him. Tup rolled his eyes with a smile at his boyfriend’s flirtatious wink.

Fives stared at Tup with an eyebrow raised. 

Tup scoffed lightly at the look. “Deal with it _ori’vod_.”

Fives dropped the look but didn’t drop the gaze from him. Tup’s hand was moving back and forth, just a few centimeters, but Fives knew what it meant. He touched Tup’s shoulder to get his attention. Tup turned to him, confused. Fives pointed down to his left hand, which was still moving.

Tup clenched his hand into a fist. Fives covered his fist with his hand. Tup sighed and didn’t take his eyes off of the floor. Fives let him be, but he still held his hand.

* * *

Fives walked back into the rec room alone. Rex was still at the meeting he left for earlier that morning. Fives tried to distract himself but it didn’t work very well. Training had helped a little bit, but it didn’t do much. He looked around the room when he opened the door and saw no one but Tup; was sitting on the end of the couch. The others were out of the rec room and other battalion members were also not present. It was odd because the eighteen-year-old’s knees were drawn up to his chest and the top of his head was the only visible part of him.

“Tup?” Fives called gently.

Tup’s head shot up with bloodshot eyes. Tears were streaming down his face, his breathing rough. Fives had only just taken note of Tup gripping his arms so tight that his knuckles were white.

“ _Ad’ika…”_ Fives approached him, not touching him just yet.

Tup seized his hair at the roots and kept his hands there. Before his crying was mute, but when Fives sat down, he openly sobbed.

“Shhhhh, shhhhh. Breathe in and out.”

Tup squeezed his eyes shut, working to hear Fives through the echoed gunshots and explosions. Fives was struggling to break through to him. It was so much easier with Rex around because he just knew how to do this better than Fives did.

Tup came out of his ball and stood up and paced. He placed his hands over his ears while maintaining an insane grip on his hair.

Fives didn’t follow. He didn’t need to because he was still in the younger boy’s line of sight. Fives sat there for an _hour,_ just to wait out the attack _._ He felt even worse than when Tup had an attack with both him and Rex. It’s hard to calm down an anxiety-riddled teenager by yourself.

“Tup, what you’re seeing, I know it’s scary but it’s not real. You’re safe in the barracks with me. I’ll keep you safe,” Fives said standing up.

He held a hand out to Tup, inviting him to take it. Tup’s eyes were clouded but he took his brother’s hand anyway. His grip was tight but Fives could handle the pain. 

A few minutes later, Tup started to struggle, trying to break the grip Fives had on his hand. Fives quickly pulled the shorter boy into a harmless body lock; with Tup’s arm restrained and pressed to his side. Fives’ arms were around his torso, holding Tup’s back to his chest so he wouldn’t hurt himself.

“I’ve got you, I’ve got you. _Udesii, udesii,”_ he whispered.

Tup struggled once again for a few seconds before he stopped, but he didn’t stop crying. Fives let his head fall back. _‘Damn you, Generals.’_ Fives cursed his Generals who dragged Rex into a meeting.

Fives let Tup’s arms move but still kept his arms around his middle. He ran a thumb over his sternum.

“Don’t cry, love. There’s nothing to be afraid of.” Fives slowly spun his brother around in his arms to face him.

He pressed his lips to Tup’s head and kept them there. Tup refrained from pulling away, if anything he leaned closer. Fives reached a hand up and pulled Tup’s hair tie out so he wouldn’t get a migraine. He ran the pad’s of his fingers over Tup’s scalp, still muttering encouraging words.

Tup hiccuped lightly, and he started to claw at his chest. Fives laced his fingers with him. “You’ve got to breathe, Tup’ika. Breathe.”

Tup shook his head slowly. “C-can’t.”

“Yes, you can,” Fives encouraged. Fives tilted Tup’s chin up so they were eye-to-eye. “You’re breathing right now, but your mind is making you think you aren’t. You’re just having an attack. You’re breathing Tup. I promise.”

Tup gave a little whine, trapping Fives’ arm in a vice grip, trying to find something to ground him to reality. Fives was starting to lose hope in calming him down. He was very close to calling Kix, who was in the medbay. 

“Damn it, Rex,” Fives barely whispered.

Fives took one of Tup’s hands and brought his first two fingers up to his pulse point on his neck. Tup’s breathing stuttered for merely a second, but then he took a surprisingly deep breath, it was better at least compared to his breathing before.

“See?” Fives smiled sadly, “You can breathe. You’ve been breathing this whole time.”

Tup nodded, finally believing him. Tup closed his eyes as he leaned into Fives’ hand which slid up to his cheek. Fives caught a tear that fell from his eye. 

“Shhhh, shh, I’m here little one,” he cooed. 

Tup slowly opened his honey eyes. Fives felt a punch to the gut. Tup’s eyes were filled with pain and tears. An involuntary whimper escaped him, and Fives brought him closer.

“It’s okay, it’s okay.”

Tup stopped crying only to apologize, “‘M sorry.”

Fives pulled back. “Hey hey hey. No. Don’t play that game, Tup’ika. I love you. I don’t care about all of this, all I care about is that you are happy. And right now you’re not happy.”

He hugged Tup once more. Tup didn’t fight it. He just his arms around his waist. He cried harshly into Fives’ armor; pain and sadness fueling his tears. Fives rocked back and forth, combing his hair away from his eyes.

Tup’s tears soon dried up, and he wiped the tracks away. He took a minuscule step back but was still very close to his older brother.

“You okay now?” Fives prompted, brushing his hair back. He didn’t expect Tup to shake his head no.

“No? Why no?” Fives stroked his shoulder, trying to coax him to talk. He sat his brother back down on the couch. He wished once again that Rex was there with him, Tup naturally responded better to him. It was a small thing Fives noticed, and he didn’t know if the others had as well. Maybe it was because Fives slammed him against the wall a while back.

Fives cringed inwardly at the possibility.

“It just keeps getting worse,” Tup whispered.

“I’m guessing you’re not talking about the attacks,” Fives guessed. Tup acknowledged it with a nod.

“Explain it.”

“I’m nervous, irritable, fidgety, can’t even sleep. Everything is just…heightened,” Tup explained, only to get frustrated at the end. Fives clutched his shoulder.

“ _Udesii_ ,” Fives said in a low tone, “Do you want to talk to Kix about it?”

Tup huffed a laugh. “I love Kix, but he’s not a mind healer. He can’t help me, and I highly doubt anyone can.”

Fives winced at the statement, feeling horrible that he couldn’t help his kid. Tup saw his reaction and gave a wince of his own, 

“Poor choice of words. Sorry. You and Rex do help, but still…”

“I get it, Tup. And I’m sorry we can’t help you more-” Fives apologized. Tup interrupted him by scooting into his lap, curling up like a puppy.

“You two do enough. You love me.”

Fives slung an arm around his shoulder. “That we do _ad’ika_.”

Tup leaned his head back. “Where’s Rex?”

“Meeting. ARCs weren’t needed.” Fives explained gently.

Tup laid in silence with Fives, relishing in the peace that they wouldn’t have much of in the next few days.

A new mission was coming up. 

Fives stroked Tup’s hair and got all the knots out so he would be able to tie it into a bun later. Fives noted that Tup fidgeted with the band around his wrist; although he wasn’t going to say anything about it.

“Rex will be back in a few hours if you want to talk to him.”

“I think I’m good,” Tup whispered, dismissing the offer. Fives wanted to say something but he chose not to. It was Tup’s choice to talk to him about it or not.

They ended their hug and stood up.

Tup quickly twisted his hair and secured it. Fives playfully smacked him on the shoulder. They both headed for the door.

“Where are you going now?” Tup asked as they were about to split ways in the hall.

“I’m going to check on Echo. He’s been gone for a while. But I’ll see you tonight.”

Tup nodded. “Alright, well, I am going to go see Comet.”

Fives pointed at him. “You know the rules.” Tup shrugged with a smirk and started to walk in the other direction towards the 104th’s barracks. 

“Yeah, yeah.” The teen waved him off.

The ARC smiled to himself, with a short chuckle, and turned to walk away.

Fives took the short trip to the ARC training room, knowing Echo was definitely in there. Echo was in the far corner, taping up his wrists. Echo looked to the door when it opened and smiled at the sight of his brother.

“Hey _vod_. What’s up?” Echo started to hit the punching bag. Fives shrugged even though Echo couldn’t see him.

“Got bored. You doing okay?”

Echo breathed heavy. “Fives. I love ya and everything but you’re hovering just a little too much.”

Fives held his hands up in surrender. “Sorry, sorry. A force of habit with Tup.”

“Psh. If you must ask,” Echo leaned against the bag, “I’m fine. I’m still using the hypos but I’m getting there.” Echo was still having insomnia, but Fives was happy he was doing much better.

Fives smiled at the answer and clapped him on the shoulder; and then Fives turned to another bag next to his brother’s. Fives began to wrap his own knuckles and faced the black leathered-back bag. They both hit their individual bags at the same speed and force. 

They hadn’t been alone in a while; just the two of them. They were both busy with work that had to do with their ARC occupations, but they hadn’t been on a solo mission in a very long time.

Echo took his eyes off the bag for a few seconds to glance at Fives. “Are _you_ doing okay?”

Fives knitted his eyebrows together at the question. “Yeah, why?”

Echo rolled his eyes to the ceiling. “I know you. And I know something is bothering you, so spill.”

 _‘Direct as always,’_ Fives thought.

“Alright, you win.” Fives didn’t stop hitting the bag though. “Rex has been gone all day and Tup had an attack.”

“Is he okay?” Concern dripped in his voice. Tup also had an anxiety attack the day before too.

Fives sighed lightly. “Yeah he’s fine, but I feel like I can’t help him as much as Rex does.” His punches were starting to become more violent. He was just transferring his self-hate into the bag.

“Fives, you can’t blame yourself for that. Tup will react differently to every person. Neither you nor he can change that.”

“Still, it sucks. He’s my kid and I can’t help him.”

Echo hit him on the shoulder. “You love him. Both you and Rexlove him so much that it doesn’t matter what you can and can’t do.”

“Funny, he said that too,” Fives chuckled dryly.

Echo gave him another analytic look. “You also miss Rex, don’t you.”

“Ding ding,” Fives deadpanned. 

Fives stopped punching and unraveled the tape around his knuckles. Echo followed suit and balled up the tap. They both threw them away. While Fives’ back was turned, Echo kicked his legs out playfully.

Fives hit the ground with a groan. “Damn you.”

* * *

Fives leaned against the corridor wall, waiting for Rex to come out of the command deck. He didn’t have to wait long for his boyfriend to come out. The Generals came out, giving Fives a small nod in greeting and Fives returned it, and then the Commanders followed.

Rex exited the room last, looking a little shocked to find Fives was waiting for him; but he quickly became suspicious. “What did you do?”

Fives gaped at him, appalled. “You think I did something that disobeyed orders; me, the innocent ARC that is just trying to survive a war? What do you take me for?”

Rex leveled him with a doubtful look. “I take you for a _reckless_ ARC trooper that I _know_ disobeys orders the first chance you get.” Rex grabbed his hand, “Also known as my _cyare_.”

Fives smiled sincerely and squeezed his hand.

“So, why are you waiting here?” Rex questioned.

The ARC fluttered his eyes closed, reliving the day’s events.

“What happened?” Rex’s voice broke through, immediately knowing something was wrong.

Fives waved him off. “It’s nothing.”

“I highly doubt that, love. What happened,” Rex asked again.

“I’ll tell you later,” Fives promised, “but right now I’m tired and I most definitely know you are exhausted. So let’s go to the barracks and at least try to get some sleep.”

Rex let the fact that something was bothering Fives go. As the pair walked down the halls, Fives slipped his first finger around Rex’s. Rex shifted his hand so he could completely interlock. The youngest of the pair childishly swung their arms back and forth causing Rex to laugh for the first time that day.

“You’re such a dork.”

Fives leaned his head on his _cyare_ ’s shoulder. Both of them multitasked, they walked and held onto each other.

Rex covered Fives’ hip with a soft hand. “Why so lovey-dovey?”

“I missed you,” Fives muttered into Rex’s shoulder pad.

“Awww, you’re so adorable,” Rex teased fondly.

Fives smacked him across the abs, getting him to shut up. Rex ruffled his hair. They arrived at the barracks, and Rex used his free hand to open the door. They were met with the sight of their brothers sprawled around the room in various lounging positions. 

Hardcase was, for some reason, laying in the middle of the floor, messing with a datapad. Echo was doing the same but seeing as he acted like a normal person; he was on the couch. Kix and Jesse were shoulder-to-shoulder on a different couch. Tup was laying across Kix’s lap, and Kix mindlessly and loosely braided his ebony hair. Tup’s eyes were closed, with faint dark circles under his eyes. At least he was much more peaceful than before. 

Rex tugged Fives along and muttered under his breath, “He’s okay with them. Don’t worry.”

Fives went easily, letting his boyfriend pull him along to the bunks. Rex jumped on Fives’ bunk and gave him a look. Fives shook his head, rolling his eyes but smiled all the same.

“Calm down, I need a shower first. Because unlike you, I did something productive today.” He grinned teasingly.

Rex started to rise from the bed. “You little-”

Fives pushed him back down and kissed him on the lips.

Fives headed for the ‘fresher, leaving Rex alone. Rex was tempted to follow him for one reason or another, but he was too tired. He slipped under the sheets and pulled them up to his chin. He dozed lightly, waking about every two minutes.

Ten minutes after Fives left for the refresher, he came back; scrubbing his hair with a towel. He had taken his armor off and was left just in his Republic issued blacks.

“Took you long enough,” Rex mumbled tiredly.

Fives smiled. “Deal with it. You love me enough not to be mad at me for my poor time management skills.”Fives leisurely slipped off the top of his blacks. Rex knew exactly what he was doing.

“Seriously,” Rex asked with a raised eyebrow.

Fives smirked at him with a condescending expression. “You’re still lookin’, aren’t you?”

Rex laughed but dipped his head in a nod. Fives slid under the covers alongside Rex. The Captian moved his arm so he could hold Fives against his left side. Fives sighed happily and Rex stroked his shoulder with his thumb. 

Rex hated to ruin the content mood Fives was in, for what seemed like the first time that day, but he had to ask, “So, why were you so stressed earlier?”

Fives somehow managed to not tense up in his arms. He didn’t speak for a while but soon he broke the silence, “Tup had an anxiety attack earlier.”

Rex nodded along with it. “Go on.”

“I felt like I was failing to help him. I sat there for an hour and watched him lose it, and I didn’t do anything. I didn’t _know_ what to do. He was right in front of me, just like so many times before, and I could move to help him. I know I should have moved sooner but I didn’t.” Fives threw his left arm up for emphasis. 

Rex felt confused. “Fives, Tup has had attacks before and you did fine with him. What changed?”

Fives glanced up at him. “You.”

Rex sighed and closed his eyes briefly. “Because I wasn’t there. Damn it. “

“It’s not your fault…”

“Is he okay?”

Fives scoffed, “I don’t think so. I don’t want to make a big deal out of it but he’s not okay. He said it himself. I’m just afraid he’s going to do something stupid.”

Rex pulled Fives on top of him.

“Fiv’ika, he’s not Copper,” he whispered to Fives. “Copper didn’t go to anyone. He didn’t feel like he should have. Tup’s different, love, we know how to help him. The Wolfpack didn’t know _anything._ ”

When Fives didn’t speak, Rex continued, “Copper was going through some shit. No one noticed. I don’t even think Copper knew what he was going through either. Tup, he knows what’s happening to him. I understand why you’re scared, but I think we have to give him some credit.”

“Still scares me,” Fives admitted, looking at Rex sadly. Rex passed his fingers through Fives’ dark hair, causing Fives to close his eyes. They stayed like this for a while; Rex brushing his hair and Fives dozing off on his chest.

“How’d I get lucky enough to have you,” Rex suddenly asked.

“Well,” Fives started, sitting up straighter, “You did save me, Echo, and Hevy by shooting that eel. And it was pretty hot.”

Rex laughed, “Oh, so you liked me from the _very_ start. Good to know.”

Fives blushed lightly and put his face in his chest. “Shut up.” 

“I mean, talk about being forward, Fives,” Rex teased even more.

Fives pushed his shoulder. “Alright alright, I get it.”

Rex stopped laughing, slowly but surely, and he smiled at Fives. “I love you.”

Fives smile even more. “I love you too.”

They connected their lips sweetly. Soon the kiss became more heated. Fives slipped his tongue into his mouth, moving to straddle his waist. Rex put one arm behind to support his weight and put the other on Fives’ neck to bring him closer.

Rex flipped Fives over, pinning him down. Fives brought him closer, breathing heavy. They kissed again until Fives pulled away. 

“Are you sure?”

Rex knew what he was asking. This would be the first time they would be this intimate ever since they got back together. Rex leaned forward and instead of kissing him roughly, he kissed him gently.

“What do you think?”

Fives grinned wickedly at him and kissed him heatedly once again. Rex went for his neck, causing Fives to melt under him. Rex lightly brushed his fingers over Fives’ chest, which generated shivers through Fives’ body.

 _“Pleeeease_ tell me you locked the door.” FIves really hoped he did. He was not in the mood to get up and do it himself.

Rex rolled his eyes the smallest bit at his laziness. “Yes Fives, I locked the door. I had a feeling our _aliit_ would try to come in.”

Fives sat up fully, his hands creeping up Rex’s shirt. He traced the outline of Rex’s taut abs with his thumb so gently that Rex wasn’t sure if this man was Fives.

“I’m surprised you’re not ripping my shirt off,” Rex chuckled.

Fives kissed his cheek, leaned closer to his ear, and whispered seductively, “I know how to break you.”

Fives’ words went straight to Rex’s crotch. Rex groaned, dropping his head on Fives’ shoulder.“You’re such a cheater.”

Fives slowly lifted Rex’s top blacks off, trying to be a tease, but he soon got too impatient and started to move his shirt off a bit faster. Rex lifted his arms to help Fives get the material off. 

They reconnected their lips, both of them moaning quietly. Rex’s hands traveled over his boyfriend's body as Fives’ fingers were in his short, blond hair. Rex let his hands migrate down Fives’ tan skin, brushing every pink scar on his torso. It was funny how a scar could make an individual’s body look so ugly, but Fives’ scars were so attractive; with their unique crisscrosses and singular-lined shapes. 

They hypnotized Rex every time he gazed upon them.

Rex reached his hips and silently admired their natural shape, before suddenly lifting Fives by the hips, and Fives squealed lightly when he was moved. Rex paused for a few seconds, struggling to contain his laughter. Fives pulled away and pouted, lower lip jutting out. A miniature laugh escaped Rex’s lips and the Captain in charge captured Fives’ plump lower lip in between his teeth. Fives forgave Rex for laughing and kissed him deeply once again.

Rex gripped Fives’ hips, pulling Fives in his lap. Rex grabbed Fives’ ass in both his hands, squeezing lightly. Fives moaned louder, feeling his pants get tighter around him. Rex smirked devilishly, moving to kiss and nibble on Fives’ neck. He could feel the tension and stress about Tup seep out of Fives’ body. 

Rex decided to become the tease. His calloused fingers went to the hem of Fives lower blacks; and his index finger brushed across the path of black curls that peeked out from above the hem. Then Rex stuck a few of his fingers under the fabric, not doing anything. Fives moved so his cock was right against Rex’s clothed member. Fives started to rock his hip against Rex, silently begging him to get on with it.

Rex gripped the front of Fives’ member, palming him through the fabric. Fives gave a high pitch whine, grinding against Rex’s hand.

Rex pulled away completely, stopping all movement between the two. Fives groaned loudly at the loss of touch, glaring lightly at him.

“I could just leave you like this. And make you suffer.” Rex grinned.

Instead of threatening him back, Fives gave Rex big puppy eyes that could rival Tup’s own when he wants something. Rex tried not to fall to the fake sadnesses’ clutches, but he couldn’t hold on very long. In the end, Rex ended up taking pity on him and kissed him again.

Fives decided to threaten him, “If you ever do something like that again, I’ll cut your dick off.”

Rex didn’t say anything after the threat. He just continued to kiss Fives deeply and teased the waistband of his blacks.

“Please,” Fives whined softly. Rex nodded against his neck and pulled the blacks off of Fives completely. Fives followed suit, moving much more quickly than Rex had. They were both in the briefs, with their blacks scattered on the floor. Rex switched their positions once again, with Fives pressed against the mattress.

Fives glanced down at both their members. He could visibly make out the wet spot, which rapidly grew at the front of his own briefs. Two things drove him crazy; that and how close their crotches were. They were _so_ close, with only one more layer between them. Rex just stared at his lover as he wet his lips, eyes dilating so there were only a few rings of his golden color, vibrant and inflamed, that were able to be seen.

Rex was enjoying the look on Fives’ face. He especially enjoyed the way Fives rolled his hips up needily, only to gain an award of delicious friction.

The look of libido on Fives’ face intensified with every passing second. “I _want_ you. Just fuck me already,” Fives whispered.

Rex broke the barrier that was between them, adding to their pile of blacks, “Your wish is my command, _cyar’ika._

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Huge shout out to AngelWars who was my beta reader/editor for this chapter, she's awesome. Follow her ao3 at AngelWars, she does amazing work!
> 
> What do you think? Requests?
> 
> Edit: I’m so sorry if you read the repeat. That was my mistake.


	28. Chapter 28-Blocked and Busted

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tup and Comet get busted doing something they were told not to do.

Tup laid on the couch, trying to find a way to sleep. He had woken up in the middle of the night, wide awake and staring at the ceiling. He had laid there, tempted to climb into one of his brother’s beds, and have one of them help him, but he refrained from doing so. He didn’t want to bother them.

He went in and out of sleep for three hours until he was fully awake. Tup looked at his holo-pad and sighed. The blue number read 0400, which meant the others would be up in three hours. That was too long for Tup to lay around and wait. So he did the next best thing; pace. He paced the length of the room over and over again, mindlessly playing with his hair.

By 0635 hours Tup was tired, but the moment he laid down and was about to sleep he snapped awake completely. He groaned, smashing his face into a pillow. He looked on the bright side of things for the first time that morning; Torrent, Ghost, and the Wolfpack were off that day. Tup thought it was great that he and his brothers had the day off, but then a cloud loomed over him. 

He didn’t feel happy about it, he just felt empty. 

Tup was aware of his depression kicking in. He would have to tell someone soon unless he wanted for it to get worse, but he held off on it. In his last futile attempt to get at least ten minutes of sleep, Tup closed his eyes once again. He wasn’t fully asleep, but he thought it was close enough. 

Until his comm went off with a message. His eyes scanned each word.

Comet:  _ You’re awake, aren’t you? _

Tup smiled lightly at the statement, and he replied quickly.

Tup:  _ You’re good, I’ll give you that. How’d you know? _

Comet’s reply also came just as quickly.

Comet:  _ Just a feeling and I was right. Are you okay? _

Tup shook his head fondly at Comet’s protectiveness. Comet was always like that; always asking if Tup was okay if he was acting strange. Tup would always respond with the same answer, which was  _ ‘I’m fine’  _ or ‘ _ Stop hovering, I’m good’  _ even if his answer was false. 

Tup thought back to the conversation with Comet after his accidental overdose. Comet was so open and honest and the answer he was about to give Comet was not the same. He sent his response,  _ “No. It’s going to be a long day.” _ He put his face in the pillow, he couldn’t believe he actually sent that. Tup pulled his face away after his comm chimed again.

Comet:  _ I know you don’t want me to ask, but do you want to talk about it? _

Tup:  _ No. _

Comet: _We’ll talk about this later,_ _I’ll see you in the mess._

Tup tossed the device on the table, sighing heavily. A distraction would be good for him.

The door slid open, revealing Kix, Jesse, Echo, and Hardcase. They were shocked to see Tup laying on the couch, staring into space. Although, they had not seen him in the bunk room so it made sense to them that Tup would be out there.

Kix’s eyes ran over him. Tup’s hair was out of its usual bun, falling across his eyes. His demeanor was odd for a teenager, he seemed defeated and exhausted but not in the sense of him being tired (which he was), he looked done with the day that hadn’t even started yet. 

He was also fiddling with fingers, avoiding eye contact. 

Kix slowly approached, sitting on the edge of the couch, and left Jesse and Hardcase in the process. Kix took two of his fingers and tucked Tup’s loose strands behind his ear. Kix raked his nails over them when Tup moved closer to him.

“You know, we have antidepressants. They could help you,” Kix offered lightly.

Tup glared at the wall. “I’m not taking drugs, Kix.”

“Okay, okay. Just making sure you know,” Kix soothed him calmly.

Kix could understand where Tup was coming from. Comet used stimulants and got addicted. He guessed that Tup didn’t want to become dependent on anything too.

“Is there anything we can do for you right now?”

“No, I’m going to see Comet later. I’ll be fine.”

Kix glanced at Jesse who gave him a pointed nod. “Do you want to tell Fives and Rex?”

Tup shook his head no firmly. “No, they’re already worried. I don’t want them to worry more.”

Hardcase sighed at Tup’s stubbornness, “Tup’ika, you’ll have to tell them  _ something _ soon. They’re your parents, they’ll see right through you.”

“Heh, no doubt about that,” Kix murmured.

Tup rolled his eyes. “They’re not my parents, just my brothers.”

“Mhm, of course, they’re  _ just _ your brothers,” Echo deadpanned. 

_ “Someone _ doesn’t seem to remember what he said when he was suffering from an infection,” Jesse muttered in a not-so-quiet sing-song voice to Hardcase.

Tup propped himself up on his elbows to stare at the other two. “What do I not remember?” Jesse and Hardcase shared a wide-eye look. “Nothing! Nothing to be suspicious about.” Jesse quickly dismissed the subject.

“Well now that you’ve said  _ ‘nothing to be suspicious about’ _ is making me more suspicious!”

“Don’t worry about it!” Hardcase yelled.

“Why?!” Tup shouted back.

“What’s with all the yelling?!” Kix asked, confused about why the situation was escalating the way it was.

“You’re also yelling!” Tup pointed out.

“Everyone shut up!” Fives' voice yelled from outside the room. Everyone’s mouths snapped shut at Fives’ voice and they all started to chuckle, minus Tup. Fives and Rex entered the room, both looking a bit irritated. 

“Now, are we done screaming for no damn reason?” Fives asked with clear annoyance in his voice. Rex scolded them quietly.

“Yes,” they replied in unison.

Rex and Fives simultaneously gave Tup a skeptical look, trying to read through the thick lines placed there by the angsty teen. He avoided their gaze on purpose because he was not about to engage in any sort of conversation that would eventually end with him becoming upset. 

Hardcase jumped on an opportunity to ask about something he noticed last night. “So, do you two want to explain why one of you locked the door last night?”

Fives had a dumbfounded look. “‘Case, I know you’re hyperactive but I didn’t know you were  _ stupid  _ too. Think harder.”

Hardcase pouted at the insult. “Fine, be like that.”

Jesse stood up with a huff and walked towards the door. “Well, now that that’s settled, I’m hungry.”

Hardcase perked up, jumped from the couch, and followed after Jesse. The others went after them. Tup went too. He puts his hair up while they walk. Tup drowned his sorrows by talking to his brothers, trying to be a little more positive today.

By the time they reached the mess hall, he had almost forgotten about that morning.

The Wolfpack was already sitting at one of the tables, acting rowdy and playful. Comet was on the right end of the huddle, laughing along with his brothers. Tup smiled gently at Comet’s rambunctiousness, tagging behind Torrent. 

They settled down next to the Wolfpack, Rex immediately leaping into the conversation with Wolffe. Comet glimpsed to his right, still grinning, and caught sight of his boyfriend. He smoothly slid over and threw an arm around him.

“Hey, babe,” he greeted with a cocky smile.

Tup hit him on the shoulder with an eye roll. “Hello to you too.”

Comet leaned closer and whispered in his ear, “I’ll distract you today, don’t worry.”

Tup pulled back a small bit to look at him with a cocked eyebrow. “Define  _ ‘distract’  _ for me, love,” Tup requested teasingly. 

“Whatever you want it to mean,” Comet finished with a shit-eating grin. Tup was about to respond but Ace and a few others gave wolf whistles when they caught sight of how close they were. They turned to their brothers, both raising an eyebrow in question.

Wolffe, Fives, and Rex turned at the whistles and saw that the two teenagers were only centimeters apart. Fives glared, while Rex and Wolffe narrowed their golden eyes. 

Tup turned and saw the look on their faces, leveling them with a challenging stare back. Rex tilted his head to the side and his brows raised; testing his teenager to defy him. Tup cheekily put only an inch between the two of them.

“Happy?”

Fives hesitated, “No but…better. Now stay like that.”

Tup curled under Comet’s arm, eating his food. Kix’s eyebrows shot up in surprise along with the other Torrent members. Everyone thought they would have to coax Tup into eating considering what happened earlier but Comet must’ve beaten them to it without even lifting a single finger. 

Wolffe also noticed it as well. Within the year he had known the anxious teenager he noticed that Kix usually had to convince Tup to eat, but when Comet was next to him; he ate without hesitation.

Comet mentally patted himself on the back as he saw his boyfriend eating too. Tup seemed to be more upbeat compared to the last conversation they had. 

‘ _ Progress’  _ he thought to himself.

Twenty minutes later, Comet’s ADHD was kicking in and he started to fidget lightly. Tup appeared to be restless as well, falling back into the trance he was in before. Comet would have to move quickly if he wanted to avoid an anxiety attack.

“You ready to get out of here?” Comet whispered.

Tup looked relieved at the request. “Please.” 

"Say no more."

Both of them stood from the table and headed straight for the door, but not before Wolffe shouted after them, “Hands to yourselves!”

Comet stuck a hand behind him, flicking him off. The Wolfpack and Torrent broke out into loud, hearty laughter. Tup slipped his hand into Comet’s larger one, gripping it tight.

“So, where do you want to go?” Comet asked once they were away from the mess hall.

Tup rolled his shoulders back, trying to get rid of the tension in his shoulder. “I need to get rid of some stress.” Tup led them to an empty training room, heading for the blue sparring mats. They stripped their armor and carefully stacked them near the wall.

Both of them naturally eased into defensive positions. Tup bounced lightly on his toes. Comet darted forward first, trying to punch Tup in the side. Tup blocked with his left forearm and dodged his punch. Then he yankedComet’s arm behind his back. Comet rolled down onto the floor. He pulled the stumbling Tup with him and pushed him off with his feet.

Tup quickly got up, not wanting to be pinned down within the first five seconds of their spar. Tup aimed a sidekick for Comet’s ribcage. He landed the kick on the desired spot, right under his ribs. Comet stumbled back but recovered quickly.

He grabbed Tup from behind, locking his arms. Tup jumped up and flipped over Comet’s shoulders.

When Tup landed, he looked just as shocked as Comet.

“I am honestly surprised that worked.” He chuckled lowly. The sound of his voice in that smooth tone was sexy.

Comet stared at him, beguiled by his moves. Then he shook his head fondly.  _ Come on Comet, don’t get distracted now. _ While Tup was somewhat distracted by his genius, Comet slammed his palm into Tup’s sternum, efficiently knocking the air out of him. Tup coughed. The sudden impact was rattling, to say the least; the mere hit alone caused him to flail, an attempt to not fall to the ground. 

Sadly, Comet pressed his knee into his back. Tup grunted at the sudden pressure— _ Haar’chak! I gave him the upper hand!  _ Comet leaned close to Tup’s right earlobe and gave him a scrutinizing glance. A stupid, lopsided sneer plastered itself onto his tan face. 

“You wanna know something? I kind of like you in this position. At this angle, it makes you look really enticing right now.”

Tup laughed out loud, “As if I would let you in my pants that easily. Good luck with that.” He struggled and tried to break free, to no avail. The knee only dug deeper into his back, it would pull off after a couple of seconds.

“You were saying?” Tup could hear the smile in the older boy’s voice.

“Shut it and let me up.” 

Comet held out a hand for Tup to grab. He hauled Tup up to stand and kissed him, which borderline between soft and rough. Tup flicked him in the ear playfully, snatching his clammy wrist.

Tup stared into Comet’s eyes, seeing a hint of desire in them. He brushed it off for now, but of course, he had to keep it in the back of his mind. Tup sized Comet up again.

“Ready for another round?”

Both of them were covered in sweat by the time the second round ended. They were panting up a storm as they began to burn out from exhaustion. Comet tapped out on the floor, not willing to put any effort into trying to break out of it.

“Wow Comet, I didn’t know that you would go down that easy. I thought you were a fighter,” Tup teased flirtatiously, getting in Comet’s personal space. Tup was about to continue but Comet cut him off.

“Alright alright, I get it.” Comet smiled and laughed as he sneakily reached up and took Tup’s hair out of its tie. Tup slapped his hand away, although he didn’t move to twist his hair back up.

Comet sighed heavily and relaxed on the floor. “Thanks to you, I’m tired as hell.”

“Hey, you’re the one that agreed to spar,  _ Wolf Boy.” _ Tup smiled sincerely and Comet returned the smile.

Comet shoved Tup off and then he scooped Tup in his arms. Tup glared at him, not liking the fact that he was being carried like a girl. Comet walked a few more feet and lets Tup get out of his arms. 

Tup was grateful that he was being put down. He instead grabbed Comet’s hand. Comet squeezed his boyfriend’s hand and led him to Torrent’s barracks.

Tup entered the pin code and the doors opened with a ‘whoosh’. Tup peered inside seeing none of his brothers present in the room. He looked to Comet and shrugged. They had both expected the others to be in the barracks, but oh well.  Tup flopped on the couch, taking up most of it. Comet chuckled and shifted his boyfriend over so Tup’s head was resting in his lap. 

Comet raked his fingers through Tup’s dark raven locks. He scrolled through a datapad, glancing down every once in a while to check on Tup.

When he looked down for the third time, Tup’s expression had dropped and he was fiddling with the hair tie around his wrist. Comet quickly shut the ‘pad off and tossed it on a table that was beside him.

“What’s with the look?” Come prompted, taking one of his hands.

“Nothing,” Tup mumbled looking away.

Comet gripped his chin and turned it towards him. Tup stared into his golden eyes stubbornly in silence. Comet didn’t say not one word because he wanted to see if his gaze would force something out of Tup. It didn’t. 

“Don’t lie.” Comet scolded him.

Tup remained as stubborn as ever, making Comet work for his answer. Comet exhaled heavily, analyzing Tup’s body, trying to find a clue or an indication of what's wrong. Tup was curled up slightly like he was striving to hide. He played with Comet’s fingers. Then Tup turned them over to run his fingers over Comet’s calloused palm. 

The memory of what Tup said that morning, that something was wrong, hit him like a ton of bricks.

“Is it your anxiety? Or your depression?”

Tup shrugged.

“Which one is it Tup’ika?”

Tup finally met his eyes. Their sadness bored into Comet. “Depression,” the answer came out as a whisper.

Tup noticed Comet’s pitiful expression aimed at him, so Tup tried to cover up his sadness. He didn’t want Comet to be sad because of him.

“Sorry to be a mood damper.”

“Don’t apologize, love.” Comet spun him around and eased him down so Tup was straddling his waist. Tup placed his head on Comet’s shoulder, feeling his muscular arms come around him. “Very funny Comet.” He groaned into Comet’s shoulder, causing the other boy to chuckle.

They stayed in the same position for an hour, and Tup slowly became more talkative. He was smiling more and engaging with Comet. 

Comet’s eyes shot down to Tup’s lips briefly. He enjoyed the fullness of them, it always attracted his attention. Tup noticed and grinned cheekily.

“Whatcha looking at?”

“You.” Was the blunt answer. Comet was not afraid or embarrassed to admit he loved him some Tup. He would never shy away from touching him, loving him, or even telling him how handsome he was; every day if he had to.

Tup knew it too thanks to him.

“Sure.” Tup pressed his lips to Comet’s and he wrapped his arms around his neck. Comet grinned into the sweet and innocent kiss. Who would be the first to take it a little further? Comet, of course. He rolled his pink lips, folding them, and deepened the kiss. Tup moaned in response. Comet gently bit Tup’s lower lip, drawing a giggle out of him, which sent butterflies flying through his stomach, and then Comet licked at his lips; requesting entry. Tup accepted his burning request and he felt a tongue slide into his warm, wet mouth. 

Tup groaned into his mouth, lacing his fingers in Comet’s dark hair. 

Comet began to work on getting Tup’s armor off and Tup followed soon after. They were soon bare of their armor, choosing to stay in their blacks for a few minutes longer. 

“Do you know what you’re doing?” Tup asked breathlessly as Comet moved to his neck.

“Kinda. But I highly doubt you know more than I do.”

Comet picked him up by the hips and Tup wrapped his legs around Comet’s waist. Comet walked slowly across the room, reconnecting their lips. He was the one to most times take the dominating role and they’ve never hit second base. He was still going to call all the shots on this one. 

Comet finally hit the table on the far side of the room and set Tup down on it. 

Comet pushed Tup’s hair away from his eyes, running a finger down his toned abs through the material of his blacks. They felt like little hills. Comet stopped right before getting to the place Tup wanted him to be. He smiled to himself when Tup moved a little closer, barely hanging onto the edge of the table.

Tup groaned against him, “You fucking tease.”

Comet, with a chuckle, did it again, receiving a well-deserved kick to the leg from the younger teen. He gripped the Torrent trooper tighter and brought him closer. They were both winging it for the first time, pretty much getting closer to borderline heated second base. Have they mentioned they've never gotten this far before? 

Tup’s hands slid across the silky smooth material of Comet’s blacks. He wanted to so badly touch skin. The— _ So close, yet so far away—  _ feeling was driving him up the walls. He wanted to scream and just tear the material off of Comet. That’s his naughty side talking though because the real, innocent Tup could never be so bold. Maybe.

Tup bit his lip at the feeling of strong muscles under his fingers. Tup clasped Comet’s shoulder, with a trembling gasp, when Comet’s knee brushes a sensitive spot down below his stretchy waistline. Comet chuckled lowly at the teen’s reaction. He reached down between his knee and Tup’s crotch and ran a hand against Tup’s covered member, causing him to moan quietly.

“ _ Udesii,” _ he whispered to Tup, huskily.

Tup took his hand and did the same thing to Comet. The Wolfpack member groaned, knees almost buckling. Tup grinned in satisfaction and kissed him again. The kiss was even more heated than five minutes ago, with Comet not holding back on touching Tup all over needily. Tup whimpered at the touch. He felt so sensitive to it all. Comet growled, bestial and guttural, and— 

“What the  _ hell  _ did we tell you about personal space?” a voice broke their lust-filled trances. Wolffe, Fives, and Rex were standing in the doorway, arms crossed. Rex was the one who spoke, giving them the same look he gave Tup earlier when they got too close. 

Tup groaned in frustration, dropping his head to Comet’s shoulder. Comet leaned closer and whispered,  _ “Cockblocks.” _

Tup had to muffle his laughter into Comet’s blacks, then he pulled away when he got a grip on himself.

Wolffe was glaring more at Comet than Tup. Comet shrunk under his sharp gaze, trying to hide behind Tup, only Tup pushed him back in front of him.

“You two are  _ so _ busted.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Beta Reader/Editor: AngelWars on ao3. She deserves all the credit for making my wack sentences sound amazing. I swear the next chapter will be all fluff, no smut.
> 
> What do you think? Requests?


	29. Chapter 29-Buir

Echo and Fives were side-by-side. They were stuck in the middle of the firefight, pinned in the direct middle of the battlefield. Dust clogged Echo's nostrils, it burned his eyes, and it also blinded his line of sight in brief moments. Cries of pain reached his ears; which made him pray for whoever was suffering, and hopefully, they weren’t alone. Loud explosions rattled his teeth inside of his helmet. Although, sweet ‘ol adrenaline beat his panic and worry, and he decided to make a joking comment.

“Well, this could’ve gone better,” Echo pointed out in a deadpanned voice. The two ARCs shared a look, and Echo could practically tell that Fives was smiling just by his voice.

“Looks like we’re going to have to improvise-”

Fives accidentally broke cover by taking a step out from behind their cover and took seven shots to the chest plate. A piece of shrapnel that had snapped off of an enemy tank plunged itself deep into his chest. Fives was knocked unconscious. Echo darted forward to catch him before he slammed into the ground 

“Fives!” Echo screamed, pulling Fives closer to him. He searched for his pulse and found it, but it was faint. 

He dragged Fives to where most of the battalions were. Echo took a hit to the left shoulder on the way over and grunted as his knee gave out, causing him to crouch low to the ground. He clutched his shoulder but returned all his focus onto his brother.

Everything moved slow and fast at the same time after that. Echo’s hearing went out like he was sinking under ocean waves, as his gaze landed on his brother’s face and never left. The pain was unreal. Echo hardly noticed two of their fellow 501st comrades coming over to assist; they moved so slow, and they quickly assisted Echo with Fives. “ARC down! We need a medic!”

The call slowly registered in Tup’s ear, like a whispering echo in the night. His heart leaped into his throat when the call mentioned one of his brothers. He would’ve taken out a droid, but was easily distracted by the distress call. Instead of shooting the damn thing, he accidentally aimed too high. The eighteen-year-old dropped behind cover, hands shaking with a mix of adrenaline and fear. The only ARCs on this mission were Fives and Echo, and one of them was hurt enough to need a medic.

He jumped when a blaster shot hit the rock that was his shield. If it weren’t for the rock; the shot would have killed him. 

“Focus Tup!” a 501st trooper ordered, not wanting the kid to die. 

Tup shakily nodded at the clone who was next to him. He steeled himself, forcing the fear out of him. He took out five droids before he looked up again. 

“Incoming!” he shouted. Others yelled the same, seeing the IED heading for a group of soldiers one-fourth of a klick away. The ground shook with tremors when the IED made an impact on the ground. 

“Haar’chak! That’s a lot of blood.” he somehow managed to overhear Kix’s comment to Helix; who was kneeling next to him. Tup quickly twisted his body so he was facing the way Kix’s voice came from. 

Tup groaned slightly at the sight of one of his ARCs lying on the ground. 

It was Fives.

‘ _Of course, it was him!’_ Tup cursed his brother in his head. Fives’ helmet was thrown to the side, abandoned, and was slightly dirtied up. Fives’ eyes were noticeably closed; like he was under a sleeping spell, Kix’s and Helix’s hands were covered in blood along with Fives’ armor and blacks, which were also painted in scarlet all over his still frame. 

Tup didn’t exactly like the scene but it could have been worse.

‘ _If he dies, I’m going to bring him back and shoot him myself.’_

The battle was over. Everyone helped the wounded; getting them medical attention. Tup assisted Wooley with carrying a 212th member across the dusty, destroyed field to where the other medics were. A huddle of them was clumped together under a makeshift medbay.

Tup carefully placed the trooper on the moist mud, cringing as he did, and patted the trooper on the shoulder reassuringly. Tup stood up and groaned as his muscles tightened painfully.

_‘That’s going to be a problem later.’_

“Easy there, I’d hate to see you break your back,” a smug voice advised. Tup turned around and couldn’t help but smile at the sight. Comet was the one who spoke to him, helmet tucked under his arm. His hair looked like it had been jostled lightly from the battle but he still had the same smile plastered on his face. Tup ripped his helmet off, loose strands of his hair dramatically slipped out of the elastic hair tie. 

“Whatever. You’re the older one so that means your back is going to give out before mine does,” Tup remarked snarkily. 

A few others around them chuckled, finding the comeback amusing. Comet laughed with them and ruffled the top of Tup’s head, making his hair even messier. Tup swatted Comet’s hand away and then handed him his helmet. Comet took it and watched Tup pull his hair out of its messy bun, but Comet immediately winced at the sight of loose hair strands gracefully falling to the ground.

 _‘Gah! His beautiful hair’_ Comet mourned the loss internally.

Tup gave him a perplexed look. “What’s with the wince?”

Comet grimaced. “Strands of your hair literally just fell out. You aren’t worried about that? Doesn’t it hurt?”

His boyfriend laughed at his confusion. “No, it doesn’t hurt silly,” Tup chuckled, “ It actually feels good to take it out. It’s only a few annoying strands of hair I’m sacrificing, so it’s worth it.”

Comet hummed to himself, deep in his thoughts. Tup quickly finished with his hair and once he did he tiredly leaned onto Comet’s shoulder. Comet almost stumbled and fell to one side; having not expected Tup to put his full weight on him. Tup relished in the peace of being in his boyfriend’s arms. 

Which lasted about 3.5 seconds.

“ _Osik_ , he’s flatlining!” Kix yelled out loud, gaining Arks’ and Helix’s attention once again. Fives was still laying on the ground, blood spilling everywhere, turning the beige patches on his torso red.

Helix dropped to his knees. “How? He was stable!”

Arks threw his arms up in the air like he was saying, ‘ _Well, he’s obviously not stable now, Helix!’._

Everyone on the field stopped what they were doing. They all had heard the distress call, via connected comms, that Fives went down earlier. The Generals froze their conversation too; concerned that one of the best ARCs was flatlining.

Tup felt his heart sink once again. He turned his face into Comet’s chest; he couldn’t bear to see Fives bleeding out. Comet shushed him quietly, feeling his heart constrict.

Torrent huddled together. Echo clung to Jesse’s arm. Rex’s jaw was clenched closed, fists opening and closing on a constant loop. Jesse was consoling an upset Echo, who was on the verge of tears; the ARC was ignoring the blaster shot he took trying to drag Fives to safety. Echo stubbornly blocked pain receptors in his shoulder. Hardcase was fighting the urge to move; his ADHD makes him fidget in stressful situations which pissed him off more than usual at that moment because this was _not_ a good time.

Comet carefully guided Tup to the rest of Torrent so he could be with his older brother, and then Comet went back to his battalion. 

Tup was standing next to Rex, who was still clenching his fists. Tup tried to make eye contact but he got nothing in return. He hooked his pinky around Rex’s warm one. Rex’s hand jerked to a stop. He hesitantly covered Tup’s left hand with his right. Tup squeezed his hand tightly and his head on Rex’s shoulder guard. The older man slid a hand over his waist, pulling him closer, and pressed a kiss to his temple. He didn’t give a damn if the Generals and the others were watching; Tup was his kid.

“Mother _fuck_ ,” Kix said exasperatedly, directed mostly at the situation. 

Arks moved to give him another downer but Helix held a hand out.

“If we give him another, we may OD him.”

Kix shook his head vigorously. “This whole _kriffing_ wasteland will be covered in his blood if we _don’t_. We’ll deal with the consequences later.” Kix gave a harsh nod to Arks, who finished his motions. 

Arks titled Fives’ chin to the side, exposing his neck.

The downer did absolutely nothing. If anything, the crimson blood was gushing out faster.

“Damn it, Fives,” Kix whispered as he continued chest compressions. Arks was watching his vitals as they kept dropping. Helix was putting pressure on the open gashes to no benefit. Arks, Helix, and Kix all shared a dismayed look. 

Kix slowly slipped his red, dirted hands off of Fives’ bloody body. He didn’t want to stop, but— _dammit—_ nothing was working. The medic checked his pulse; there was nothing.

Kix turned back to look at his Company. Some were trying—and failing to stifle their crying, while some were dead silent, and many others looked just plain angry and frustrated. 

Torrent, however, looked completely broken. 

Echo and Tup were crying, not looking at their dying brother. Tup buried his face in Rex’s chest and Echo’s in Jesse’s chests. Jesse refused to look down at the ground, but he had no idea where else to look except forward.

“Helix?” Kix whispered. 

Helix looked up from the ground and nodded absentmindedly.

“If I break his sternum, will it start his heart?” Kix was desperate. He didn’t want Fives to go out like this, and he also didn’t want to try if it wasn’t worth it. 

Helix didn’t answer.

“Fuck Helix, will it work?! If you say it’s hopeless, I won’t attempt it!!” Kix bargained.

Helix shook his head sorrowfully, “Kix, he’s lost too much blood, and he hasn’t been breathing in a while-”

Kix glared daggers at him. “Do I look like I give a shit?” He hissed.

Helix closed his eyes and frowned deeply.

“Answer the question, damn it! Will it work?!” Kix yelled.

Helix sighed and held eye contact again. “Maybe.”

That was all Kix needed, and he didn’t even hesitate for a second. He took the side of his fist and slammed it down on Fives’ upper chest. He cringed slightly at the feeling and sound of bone breaking under his hand.

Fives shuttered as he took a breath, blinking his eyes open, coughing violently. His eyes were lidded with exhaustion from the pain meds. Kix let a sigh of relief out, not knowing he was holding it in. Others did the same.

Fives groaned in pain, clawing at the ground. Kix held his shoulders down.

“You better not move, fucker,” he whispered. 

“ _Kriff_.” Fives cursed, gritting his teeth.

“Knock him out, Arks,” Helix ordered, applying pressure once again.

Arks shakily applied the hypo, efficiently putting Fives back into a dreamless sleep. His hands didn’t stop shaking and neither did the flashes of the gory scene. 

Helix wrapped more patches around Fives’ wounds and then, trying to lift the mood, said dryly, “If he bleeds out through these, I am no longer a medic. I will quit.”

He managed to get most of the battalions to laugh. But Arks didn’t even crack a smirk. His hands were twitching so much it looked like he was about to have a seizure. He felt someone grip his hands and pulled him away from Fives. He guessed it was one of his older brothers, given by the size of their palm.

“He’s okay, Arks. You can calm down now,” Wolffe’s usually sharp voice whispered kindly to him. He nodded jerkily, squeezing his eyes shut.

Wolffe looked Arks up and down, skeptic and concerning gaze keeping its hold until Arks seemed to calm down. They would talk about it later.

* * *

Echo hissed as Hardcase knocked him on the arm, jostling his hurt shoulder. Hardcase and Jesse shot him weird looks at the wince. Tup and Rex were both in their separate worlds trying to cope with the stress so they didn’t see the wince. They were going to find out eventually, so Echo made them wait until they got to the barracks.

They all shed their armor tiredly, ready to just collapse and sleep. Echo let out a sound of pain when he finished taking off his top armor.

Jesse and Hardcase immediately stopped in their actions. Echo cradled his arm to his chest to get some tension off his shoulder, turning away from the others so they would not be able to see the blood dripping from his blacks.

Jesse and Hardcase shared a look. Hardcase gestured for Jesse to check on Echo with a tilt of his head. 

Jesse crossed the room to reach the ARC. He slowly held out an open hand, waiting for Echo to let him see his injury. Echo shook his head like he was saying he was fine and didn’t need to be checked out.

Jesse remained patient with Echo. He didn’t raise his voice; he didn’t think he could yell at Echo even if he tried. He kept his hand out, not saying anything. He saw Echo become more aware of his pain by each passing second.

“Echo, let me see it,” Jesse kept his voice light in tone and volume because Tup had just fallen into a restless sleep.

Echo slowly turned his shoulders to face Jesse. Blood was dripping to the floor but Jesse didn’t move to clean it up. Instead, he inspected the blastershot by gently touching the skin around it. Jesse was aware that the skin under Echo’s blacks was littered in large scars; scars he had received from a _bad_ mission. 

“What hurts more? Your shoulder or the blastershot?” Jesse asked because he genuinely didn’t know if Echo’s deemed ‘bad shoulder’ was the source of the problem.

“Shoulder,” Echo whimpered out, gripping his arm tighter.

Jesse sat him down on Fives’ bunk. “Do you want to go to Kix, or do you want me to handle it?”

Echo plopped his head on Jesse’s bare shoulder. “You.”

Jesse nodded quickly and retrieved a spare medpack that every barracks had; for emergencies only. He carefully wiped the blood off before cleaning the wound, administering gentle pressure here and there. Next, Jesse placed a beige patch on the gash and then went to wash the sticky, scarlet residue off his hands.

Echo shifted so he was sitting with his legs crossed. He dropped his head in his hands, holding back the tears that wanted to bubble over. His whole body was tense—like coiled springs ready to shoot up—to the point where it was painful.

Jesse came back and sat behind him. He hugged his brother’s waist, squeezing it comfortingly. He frowned as he felt Echo’s muscles harden. 

Jesse’s hands traveled lightly up to Echo’s left shoulder. He took both hands and started to work Echo’s rotator cuff around. Echo tensed in pain when his shoulder was manipulated by Jesse. Jesse hushed him softly, continuing his motions; already feeling Echo relax despite his throbbing pain. The older of the two winced inwardly at the tightness of his brother’s shoulder. He didn’t expect anything less though; with the shot he took and the stress he was in, there was bound to be some type of pain.

Jesse stopped when Echo’s body seemed to go slack with exhaustion, and he stroked Echo’s hair a few times. He climbed out of the bed just as his eye caught Rex’s form. It was similar to Echo’s, but instead of hunching forward, he was leaning against the wall behind the bunk. His mind was far from reality, Jesse could see that much with only a single glance. ut Rex was very aware of the present; that’s why he was spacing out, he was trying to escape it.

Jesse took Echo’s hand and pulled him to stand up. Hardcase stood as well, knowing that Jesse was giving Rex some time to think and process. The three of them walked into the rec room, leaving Rex and Tup alone.

While Rex was detached from everything, Tup kept snapping awake from the horrid flashes of the blood within his dreams. He whined childishly in frustration of not being able to sleep or banish the memories from his brain. He sat up, sighing heavily. He wasn’t aware he was crying until he physically felt the tears that dripped onto his hands. He cried quietly, wanting his breakdown to be silent so Rex wouldn’t notice; he didn’t need to worry about Fives and Tup at the same time. He didn’t deserve that amount of stress on his shoulders.

Tup was very shaken by Fives’ injury. Seeing him flatlining—just imagining the bouncing curve playing around in the back of his mind— and his brother’s blood that kept him alive, covering the medic’s hands—it was beyond traumatizing to the teen. He may be a soldier and was bred for this kind of life, and was taught to not fear anything, even blood, but it was hard when he _did_ fear of losing his brothers.

However, Fives and Rex were different from his other brothers. He felt more protected when he was with them than anyone else; it was like they could stop anything bad from happening to him. He felt safe. Fives and Rex were his barriers—surrounding him from all the bad— from all this war and carnage. Tup was at a loss of what type of love that was. 

And when he saw Fives dying, he had never felt so much pain in his life. Sure, his depression and anxiety made his life a living hell sometimes but this was a whole new level of pain. He couldn’t imagine his life without Fives in it. There would be no joy in the barracks, no one would be able to fill the big hole that Fives would leave behind. Rex wouldn’t be the same man that Tup knew. 

Tup would’ve lost two people he loved the most, simultaneously.

On the other side of the room, Rex observed Tup as he calmed down from his breakdown. He averted his eyes from the sight of Tup obviously crying; because he wanted to at least give Tup that, some privacy. It wasn’t like Tup could hide it from him though. Sometimes Rex was certain he knew that kid better than Tup knew himself. He also didn’t need to say a word about it, they both knew why he was upset. 

He couldn’t even fathom the possibility of Fives not being in his life. There would be a piece of his heart missing if Fives weren’t there to keep it together. Rex always told himself to not get attached to rookies like Fives, but after getting to know the outgoing clone he found himself disobeying his principles. And soon that friendship became something more— something that can never be replaced by any other.

Even though Fives had managed to get into his heart, Rex still had to deal with the fear of possibly losing his lover. So he vowed to not get attached to _anyone_ else. His squadmates: Ponds, Bly, Wolffe, and Cody would always hold a special place in his heart. If their time came for them to leave, it would hurt, a lot, but he would be able to let them go. The same went for Torrent; he would miss them dearly but he knew that they wouldn’t want him to dwell on their death.

Then karma came and bit him on the _shebs_. The day he met Tup in the medbay, staring at the floor after losing his batchmates, Rex knew he and Fives were in trouble. From the moment he laid eyes on the scared teenager—not even seventeen—he understood that he and his morals were screwed big time. And when Fives saw the look in his eyes, a pitiful smile had crossed his face. Fives became screwed as well. The kid didn’t even try to get close to them and they still loved him regardless. It was like they imprinted on a lost cub and immediately claimed them as theirs, to protect, to hold, and to cherish.

They would love him no matter what. No matter how many times he disobeyed them, or fought with them, they would always love him. They had _unconditional_ love for him. A type of love that would _never_ break.

But Fives wasn’t there. He wasn’t in the barracks where he was supposed to be. He was in the medbay with Kix, most likely bleeding out at this very moment. He was _dead._

Dead.

Dead. 

Dead.

Rex stared at his hands. _Dammit!_ _He promised he wouldn’t leave._

Rex wanted to scream. He needed to scream, he needed to feel good and let his anger, his frustrations out to the universe but he couldn’t manage it. felt as if something was blocking his windpipe, choking him. Rex whimpered at the discomforting sensation and reached up to grasp at whatever was choking him, he couldn’t touch it or remove it though. There was nothing there!

Blood pounded loudly in his ears like a rushing waterfall, blocking out the surrounding sound like a muffler. His nails dug painfully into his palm, almost breaking the skin. His hands trembled with quaking tremors. Rex felt like he was in the middle of a goddamn hurricane. The picture of Fives bleeding profusely on the ground was burned into his brain.

_I don’t want to lose him—!_

He jumped when a warm hand rested on his back, pausing his terrifying thoughts immediately Rex frantically tried to pull away from the potential danger but the person had a strong grip around his wrist. He struggled even more.

“Hey hey, it’s okay. It’s just me,” a soft voice spoke to him, “I’m not going to hurt you.”

Rex falteringly relaxed in one of his brother’s arms. Said person’s arms were then wrapped loosely around him, strategically placed so he wouldn’t feel trapped. The hug didn’t fix his breathing problem, unfortunately. Rex inhaled too quickly and didn’t exhale enough; his lungs ached terribly.

“You have to breathe _ori’vod._ You’re going to pass out,” his brother, he recognized as Tup kindly pointed out to him. He sucked in a breath but choked halfway through, a sob escaped his trembling lips.

“Shhhh, shhhh, Fives is fine, Rex. I promise he’s okay.” Tup cooed.

He rotated Rex so he was no longer pinning him down, which may have been causing some panic. Instead, he gently pressed Rex’s ear over his heart; that always seemed to calm him down considerably. Tup purposely slowed his breathing so Rex could hear the difference of what it's supposed to sound like. He ran a hand through Rex’s hair, as blonde as a cropped wheat field. Tup pressed a small kiss to the crown of his brother’s head, muttering soothing words under his breath.

Tup patiently waited out the panic attack, now understanding how much Rex and Fives hated seeing him have an anxiety attack. It was scary on both sides it seems. 

“Kix is with him, he’s okay. He’s okay,” Tup finally spoke aloud when Rex calmed down. Rex took a shuddering breath, pulling away from Tup slightly. Tup scoot back, crossing his legs over one another.

Rex gazed at Tup with a dry smile. “Now I know how you feel every time you have an attack.”

Tup rubbed his shoulder comfortingly. “It most definitely is not fun.”

Rex wiped his tears away and stared at the sheets. Then he asked, “Are you okay?”

Tup looked a tad bit confused, not sure what Rex was asking. He cocked his head to the side.

“I saw you crying earlier. And it looked like you had a nightmare.” Rex explained carefully, voice still hoarse. Rex noticed Tup curl his shoulders forward a few inches. He moved closer to Tup.

“What is it?” Rex asked gently.

Tup brought his knees up to his chest, dropping his chin on them, and he muttered, “I know I told you that he was fine...but what if he isn’t?”

Rex swung his left arm over Tup’s shoulder, pushing their sides together. Tup shifted so his temple was against Rex’s rib cage.

“They restarted his heart, Tup. You heard Kix and Helix talking, didn’t you?” Rex asked for clarity. Tup nodded into his chest. He may not have seen them do it but he had heard Kix breaking Fives’ bone. 

“Then why are you still afraid?”

Tup shot him a glance with an eyebrow raised. “Shouldn’t you be asking yourself that? You just had a panic attack.”

Rex sighed but nodded all the same, “Alright, fair point.”

They fell back into a comfortable, yet tense silence. Tup ended up dozing off slightly while Rex moved so his back was resting against the wall again. Tup had subconsciously clung to Rex’s middle, strands of his hair fell in front of his face. Rex considerately pushed the stray strands behind the teenager’s ear. 

Tup’s eye’s suddenly snapped open and he took a harsh intake of breath. Instead of pulling away from Rex, he nuzzled closer to him. Rex looked down when he felt Tup move.

“Tup?” he prompted quietly.

“I’m scared, _Buir_ ,” Tup whispered into Rex’s broad chest.

It took every fiber in his being to not freeze or tense up at the name. “Why are you scared, Tup’ika?”

“I don’t want him to die,” Tup whimpered quietly as if saying it quieter would make it less likely to happen or the possibility believable

“Shhh, shhh,” Rex wanted to avoid an anxiety attack at all costs, “I know you don’t want him to die, but luckily for us, we’re stuck with him for many more years.”

Rex felt hypocritical; he just freaked out for the same reason and now he was telling Tup to not worry about it.

“You don’t know that,” Tup said, voice drenched. 

“Yes, I do,” Rex stated firmly, “I know Fives and I know he won’t leave like this. You’re going to have to trust me on this, okay kiddo?”

Tup didn’t seem entirely convinced but he nodded anyway.

The first thing Fives became aware of was the pain. A lot of pain. The next thing he noticed was that someone was holding his hand. He cracked his eyes open and shut them quickly at the bright lights.

He opened them after a few seconds, slowly this time, and observed his surroundings. The hand holding his drew back... 

Fives looked for the owner of the hand, smiling when he saw it it was Rex. The Captain was sitting with Tup glued to his side.

“Hey, _Rayshe’a_.” Rex greeted quietly.

“Hey,” Fives croaked out, smiling to the best of his ability.

He turned his gaze to the teenager sitting next to Rex with a soft smile. “Hi, _Tup’ika.”_

“Hi, _Buir_ ,” Tup responded with a slightly playful gleam in his eyes.

Fives blinked once, then twice, and finally tilted his head to the side in question.

“Told you your time would come,” Rex said in a smug tone.

A voice popped into the conversation, “So, you finally listened to Jesse, Hardcase, and I about them being your parents.”

Kix was leaning against the wall, looking at the scene with fondness.

Tup shot the medic a glare for the comment. “Hush up Kix. We were having a sentimental moment here.”

Kix retreated with his hands in the air, walking back to another injured clone.

Fives and Rex chuckled and then turned to look at their kid with affection. Tup ducked away from the attention, a rosy hew appeared on his cheeks.

Fives shifted so he wasn’t lying down completely. He arched an eyebrow at Tup with a smile. “So, _‘Buir’_ , huh?”

Tup nodded to the ground, a smile of his own sliding on. 

“When did that happen?” Fives was curious and he couldn’t help but ask. The only time Tup acknowledged Rex and Fives as _Buir_ was when he was hurt and under an infection. Any other time one of their brothers pointed out their parental roles; which Tup denied automatically. And if Tup would have been honest with himself about the topic he would’ve accepted Rex and Fives as his parents from the first a couple of months 

“Well,” Tup started, “I kind of did some thinking, to put it lightly. I just realized that I won’t know what to do if you…died.” Tup trailed off at the end.

“It also slipped out when I was with Rex,” he added.

Fives groaned which, in turn, Rex laughed.

“That’s so not cool. You get two _‘Buirs’_ and I only get one.”

Rex was about to respond when Tup jumped in, “Wait what? Since when have I called Rex that other than today.”

Fives and Rex shared a look like they finally connected pieces of a puzzle.

Rex looked to Tup. “So you really don’t remember? We thought you just didn’t want to admit it.”

Tup still didn’t understand. “Just spit it out, please.”

“Remember when you got hurt on the mission a month ago?” Fives asked. Tup nodded along

“Well, you were kind of out of it: the infection hit you pretty hard. And you called me _Buir_ without realizing you did it.”

Tup’s jaw seemed to hit the floor. “That’s what Jesse, Kix, and Hardcase are always alluding to?!” he asked incredulously.

“Yes,” the voices of Helix and Kix answered.

“Again. Interrupting,” Tup pointed out.

Rex and Fives laughed at his antics. Rex pulled Tup into a side hug. Tup followed easily, smiling as he did so. Rex stuck his tongue out behind his back at Fives, the other ARC returned the gesture.

Tup pulled away and very carefully hugged Fives, resting on his chest briefly. Fives ran his fingers over Tup’s scalp a few times before letting him pull away.

Tup’s gaze turned serious. “If you ever do that to me again, I’ll kill you.”

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Beta-reader/Editor: @AngelWars.
> 
> This was a long one. Sorry for the wait! I hope the fluff was worth it in the end.
> 
> What do you think? Any requests?


	30. Chapter 30-The Truth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will Tup finally admit his big secret to the Wolfpack?

Tup jumped awake, sweat sticking to his body. He took a ragged breath. He grabbed a fist full of the sheets in a white-knuckle grip. He squeezed his eyes shut, taking another breath.  _ It was just a dream, calm down _ , he thought, not trying to make his brothers in the room panic. He was in the barracks on Coruscant. He wasn’t on…  _ that _ planet. He wasn’t on the planet that claimed his little brothers.

He got a handle on his emotions and peeled his eyes open. Kix and Jesse were giving him a look varying in different levels of concern. They were laying in their bunk, Kix lying partially on top of Jesse who had previously been running a hand down the medic’s spine.

Tup shakily waved them off, not even aspiring to be convincing, swinging his legs over the side of the bunk. His feet hit the floor without a sound. He rolled his shoulders back a few inches, muscles slackening. 

He didn’t remember his dream to the last detail but he still had the gist of it. His batchmates were starring in his memory-like dream; specifically Riley and Peyton. Peyton and Riley had been the second and third oldest, always being protective of Tup even though Tup was the eldest. By the time he was seven, he knew that he had to be the protective one, but as time went on, they automatically followed in his footsteps.

The dream had started with him in the barracks with the two, lounging around. He couldn’t remember the last conversation he had with them but he was aware that that certain scene was when it all transformed into a nightmarish black hole. 

Suddenly blood had started to drip out of Riley’s head. Rivets of blood streamed down his face. Tup was alarmed by the amount.. Riley crashed to the floor, motionless. Tup had run to his side but found no pulse. He looked for Peyton once more but the scene instantly changed to something else entirely. Peyton was on the ground, gasping in pain. Blood was seeping out of him and Tup couldn’t pinpoint where it was coming from.

Ice crawled into his heart. 

“Peyton, what the hell?” Tup asked when he crouched down at his side. 

The younger clone gripped his older brother’s hand, staining it with blood. There was scarlet everywhere, like a horror scene. Tup’s gently cupped the side of Peyton’s neck, begging any god to not let this happen. His hand brushed something abnormal and hard, he looked down and saw three ribs jutting out of his brother’s chest cavity

A hand startled him as it touched his shoulder. He stared straight into Peyton’s eyes, seeing the light fading away. 

“This is your fault,” Peyton whispered.

And that’s when he had snapped awake.

Kix and Jesse still kept their gaze on him, ready to grab Rex and Fives from the other room if need be. 

Tup glanced at them from the corner of his eye, seeing Kix give him a silent question. The minuscule nod that Tup gave didn’t completely suffice the couple’s concern but it was something. He would talk to Comet about it later if the Wolfpack wasn’t around, he didn’t want them to find out he lied about his batchmates, and he also didn’t want to worry Torrent about it.

“I’m fine,” Tup whispered, hearing the lie in his voice.

“Okay, Tup’ika. Let us know if that changes, kiddo.” Jesse reassured him, letting the lie go. 

Tup stood up, and soon as he did Rex and Fives came in at a quick pace.

“We’ve got a mission.” Rex alerted them. Tup, Jesse, and Kix turned to look at the Captain and ARC.

Fives waved a hand at them to hurry. “General Skywalker needs us in the briefing room. Let’s go.”

Tup nodded and followed them out.

Torrent walked back through the halls, tired after a strenuous battle. It was an easy-in-easy-out type of mission. There was a small scrimmage between the Separatists, but no one was seriously injured. 

Except for the fact that Tup took a hit to the head, making him dizzy as he walked with his brothers. He brought a hand up to his head, rubbing his temples. He stumbled slightly, bumping sides with Hardcase.

Hardcase acted on instinct to grab Tup by the arm to steady him. His other hand fumbled to grab Kix to get the medic’s attention. Kix turned around, surprised when he felt Hardcase’s hand on his shoulder. He ran his eyes over Tup, seeing him gripping his head. 

Kix went to his side and held onto Tup’s wrist.

“Talk to me, kid,” Kix prompted him, seeing the others stop out of the corner of his eye.

“Head,” Tup whispered.

Kix nodded to himself, pulling Tup’s hands away from his head. Kix quickly pulled out a small penlight.

“Look straight ahead, Tup.”

Tup obeyed, focusing on the wall. He flinched a tiny bit when Kix shined the light over his eyes. It was making his head hurt.

“Concussion, a pretty bad one too.” Tup registered Kix's voice telling the others. A gentle hand clasped his upper arm. “I’m giving you a few scans, I don’t want to risk it.”

“Sure,” he mumbled, rubbing his temples again.

The walk to the medbay and the scans went by in somewhat of a blur, his pain blocked it. He was grateful when Kix let him lay down in the medbay and allowed him to close his eyes. Kix kept an eye on him, however, to make sure he stayed conscious.

Once Tup’s migraine disappeared he slowly peeled his honey eyes open. He looked around and saw Wooley sporting what looked like a broken arm. Tup winced; it looked very painful. There was a rough-looking bruise that spread from his wrist to his lower arm, and the joint was severely swollen. Wooley tried to move it but his fingers started twitching on their own at the vain effort.

“ _ Haar’chak _ ,” Wooley cursed under his breath.

“Now that,” Tup pointed to Wooley’s wrist, “Looks like shit.”

Wooley scoffed, amused, “You’re telling me. It hurts as bad as it looks, believe me.”

Tup nodded, “What the hell did you do?”

“I got a little tousled. Landed on my arm weird, heard a snap as did a few others. Next thing I know it hurts like fuck and it’s twice the size it should be.”

Wooley gave his wrist a distasteful glance like it was his wrist’s fault it broke. He shifted so he was facing Tup better. 

“What about you?”

Tup huffed a laugh. “I took a hit to the head. I’ve got a concussion. And one hell of a headache.” He grinned at the end, taking the situation as lightly as possible.

“How long are you out for?”

Tup frowned, taking a guess, “Roughly a week. If I’m lucky, less. But knowing me, _ that’s _ not going to happen.”

Wooley winced as he tested his wrist once more. “Does Comet know?” he questioned through the pain. 

“No, not yet,” Tup answered before looking to the ceiling, “I should probably do that soon.”

Wooley laughed, “Yeah, you probably should. He’ll be pissed if he hears it from someone else-”

Wooley ended his sentence short instead, he yelled through gritted teeth, “Shit! Fuck!” 

Tup propped himself up on his arms. “Are you okay?”

When he didn’t answer, Tup scanned the room for one of the other medics. He spotted Helix and called him over.

“Helix!” Tup shouted. Helix turned around and looked confused. Why was Tup calling him over? He recalled that Kix had already taken care of him a while ago.

“What is it Tup?”

All Tup did was point twice to his brother beside him. Helix swiftly came over to Wooley, taking his little brother’s hand gently into his hands. Tup turned away, letting Wooley have as much privacy as possible in the large, open medbay.

Kix came over too, Helix had asked him to. Helix spoke to Wooley in a hushed tone. Tup smiled softly, feeling bad for Wooley, his wrist looked shattered. But Tup couldn’t focus any longer, seeing as he was getting tired. It was late, he normally would just go to sleep but seeing as he couldn’t, he wasn’t looking forward to it.

Kix looked up from Wooley, seeing Tup fighting to stay awake. “Tup, why don’t you go back to the barracks, okay? That way the others can help you stay awake.”

Tup gladly stood up, having not stood in hours. He gave Wooley a gentle squeeze on the shoulder and then left the room. He made his way to the barracks, feeling more alert than he had since a few minutes ago, but a wave of exhaustion hit him like a bag of bricks once he reached the door. 

Rex and Fives were sitting on the couch, both of them scrolling through the holonet on their datapads. The others weren’t present in the rec room so Tup assumed they were either sleeping or just in the bunk room laying around. 

“ _ Buir, _ ” Tup called lightly.

The two of them turned at the call. They smiled at the sight of their kid standing in the doorway. 

“Hey kiddo, how’s your head?” Fives greeted, blindly tossing the datapad on the table.

Tup debated his options; tell a little white lie or tell the honest truth. He was too tired to lie, he would get caught up in it. 

“Hurts pretty bad.”

Fives lifted an arm, inviting Tup to crawl under him. Tup accepted his offer, laying himself on top of Fives’ chest. Fives took Tup’s hair, hoping it would distract from the pain. Tup melted underneath Fives’ touch as he stroked his hair.

Fives glanced at Rex with a grin, seeing him look down at Tup. Rex pressed a kiss to the side of Fives’ head, grabbing his free hand. Fives squeezed his hand and his full attention back to the teenager against his chest. The ARC talked at a soft, whisper level as he attempted to keep him awake.

An hour later, Rex stood up from the couch, ruffling Tup’s hair as he did.

“I’ll switch out with you in a few hours.” Rex whispered to his cyare.

Fives nodded in understanding, shifting both him and Tup into a better position where they were more comfortable. Once Rex disappeared Fives nuzzled the side of his kid’s face, urging him to look at him.

“You never said what happened.” Fives pointed out.

Tup thought for a moment, replaying what happened. “I  _ think _ I got thrown off the LAAT at the beginning of the battle.” Fives tensed up tremendously. “It wasn’t that far off the ground,” Tup hastily added, feeling Fives’ reaction.

Fives forced himself to calm down. He handed Tup a datapad, another way to distract him and keep him awake. While Tup stared at the blue screen, Fives began to play with his ultra-soft hair. Tup smiled slightly at the feeling of Fives’ fingers passing through his loose strands.

“Does Comet know yet? Or are you telling him tomorrow?” Fives asked.

“That’s a problem I’mma have to face tomorrow.” Tup rubbed his temples, already dreading the conversation. 

Fives laughed at his answer.

Tup sat in Comet’s lap the next day, struggling like never before to stay awake. Comet kept switching up their positions so Tup’s body wouldn’t get too comfortable enough to consider it lights out. Tup huffed as Comet shook his shoulder once again to keep him awake.

“Sorry babe. You heard Kix, only one more hour.” Comet sympathized with him. Tup shot him a glare. Comet chuckled; he had been on the receiving end of that tired, irritated glare multiple times.

“It feels like an eternity,” Tup complained. 

Torrent and at least half of the battalion were scattered around the room and they all laughed when Tup said what it felt like. Kix came into the room, a couple seconds later, seeing Tup relaxing on top of his boyfriend. The medic recognized his patient was suffering thanks to the bags under his eyes, the pure exhaustion swimming in those sinking orbs, and the way he audibly sighed; as if the louder he made it, the sooner he would be allowed to go to sleep. 

When Kix came into Tup’s view, the younger clone flipped onto his stomach, staring at the medic.

Kix met his golden eyes, leveling his emotions, giving the kid a stoic facial expression. Tup’s mystical golds bored into his soul, but Kix wasn’t going to break so easily. 

“Oooooo! He’s using the puppy eyes again,” a clone, Cable, pointed out in sing-song.

Kix continued to stare down Tup, not letting up the intensity of his glare. Tup’s eyes softened, even more, putting everything he had to sell it.

“Don’t give me that look,” Kix firmly stated, folding his arms.

Tup somehow managed to look even  _ sadder _ , it was like someone he loved had just taken his heart out and crushed it in their bare hand; or like someone killed his favorite Tooka pet.

Kix was crumbling under his gaze.  _ Fight it, Kix! Fight it! _ “No.”

Tup’s eyes developed fake tears in them. If it was anyone else other than Kix they would have broken long ago.

“Don’t give me the eyes, Tup. My answer is still no.”

“Kix, please,” Tup voice broke as he pleaded with his brother.

Hardcase was laughing alongside Jesse and a few other clones. “He’s fucked.” The heavy gunner commented.

“ _ Haar’chak _ ,” Kix hissed through clenched teeth, “Fine.” He squeezed his eyes shut in defeat.

Tup’s tears disappeared instantly, a cheeky smile replaced it. He curled back around Comet, who was struggling to contain his laughter. The same couldn’t be said for Jesse, Hardcase, and several others though, who were openly laughing.

“My gods, that kid has a  _ karking _ weapon on him,” Banks managed to get out.

“It’s so hypnotizing, I dare say!” Jesse agreed.

Hardcase and Jesse quickly shut up their clownery at the glare Kix aimed at them that was as sharp as knives. If they hadn’t shut up, Kix would have ripped them a new one later. 

Tup quickly closed his eyes, already dozing off.

  
  


“Did you guys hear there’s supposed to be a thunderstorm tomorrow?”

Tup’s heart stopped, he hated thunderstorms with his whole being. The storms on Kamino were violent and threatening. They always made Tup feel like it would sink the entire establishment he lived in, and drown him at sea.

“What?” Tup half-whimpered.

Hardcase nodded, oblivious to Tup’s fear. “Yeah, a mild one of course. But it’s gonna be a huge one apparently. That’s what I heard.”

Tup whined, dropping his head in his hands. Fives, who was beside him, ran a hand down his spine.

“‘Case, not helping,” Fives growled.

Hardcase looked like a lost puppy. He then realized Tup didn’t like his statement, not at all. His eyes widened in realization. “I-I mean, it-it should be fine. Right?”

Rex rolled his eyes. “You suck at sympathizing.”

Rex comm chimed. A message from the General.

“We got a mission. Tup, why don’t you go with the Wolfpack, I’ll comm Wolffe. Kix isn’t going to let you go with that concussion of yours.”

Tup agreed and said his goodbyes to Torrent. He pulled out his comm, putting in Comet’s frequency. “Hey, I’m coming to your barracks now.” Tup smiled at the holographic image of his boyfriend, which wavered every so often.

_ “Sure thing, Wolffe and the others also know. See you soon.” _

Tup pinned in the code for the Wolfpack’s barracks. As he was entering the room, he stopped suddenly. Two members of the main battalion were play fighting and one of them happened to throw another brother right in front of Tup. The 501st clone didn’t even flinch, he was used to it at this point. All he did was go to Comet who was on the couch. 

Comet looked up when he felt someone’s weight press into the couch to his left. He turned to greet his boyfriend with a quick kiss.

“Hey babe,” Comet said with a grin.

“Hi,” Tup replied, a little distracted.

Comet faced him completely, ignoring the loud conversations coming from his brothers. “What’s wrong, is everything okay?”

“It’s stupid, Com’.” Tup downcasted his eyes completely.

“You know that’s a dumb excuse, Tup. Tell me what’s wrong.”

Tup nuzzled closer to Comet. “Thunderstorm…”

Comet gave him a side hug “I was hoping you didn’t find that out.” He smiled down at the younger boy. “Don’t worry, I’ll protect you from the big, bad thunder.’

Soon the others settled down— most of them leaving to do their own thing. The Wolfpack sat down at the surrounding couches; with Arks, Blitz, and Ace, ready to play a game of Sabacc. They lapsed into different conversations, or sometimes a comfortable silence.

“How’s your head?” Blitz suddenly asked.

“Still hurts sometimes, but I’m good.” Tup smiled at Blitz’s conversational tone.

Blitz was about to say something else when Ace won the round.

“Pay up.” Ace held his hand open for his winnings. The others grumbled but begrudged gave him his credits.

Wolffe shuffled and dealt the cards again, then looked at Tup with a small smirk on his face. “Tup, who usually wins when you guys play?”

Tup hummed and thought for a moment. “It shifts a lot. But I think either Fives, Rex, or Hardcase who have the most wins under their belts.”

“Rex better be one of the best, the  _ osik’ika _ would beat us all time in officer training. What about you?id you and your batchmates ever play?” Wolffe huffed.

Tup’s smile faded the smallest bit, then he recovered quickly. “No, I didn’t play much. Mostly Peyton and Riley played with the other batches, but Trigger, Finn, and I didn’t play much. Those two were the gamblers of the group.”

Ace gave him a mix of a skeptical and sad look. “You don’t talk about your batchmates much. Did you have a falling out with them?”

“Something like that,” Tup answered, not realizing he almost spilled a secret to Comet in front of the Wolfpack. It was a secret he had kept from everyone in the Wolfpack. He wasn’t ready to share. Comet gave him a weird look; he knew that Tup’s batchmates were killed...but that answer somewhat proved something else. Comet dropped it, thinking of what Tup could’ve meant. 

Tup shifted so he could rest against the arm of the couch, still close to Comet but also had his own space.

They stayed like that for hours. Just playing the game or sitting around talking. Comet grinned down at Tup, who was still resting on the end of the couch to Comet’s left. Tup had a relaxed expression on, loose hair falling across his shoulders. They were sitting within arms reach of each other, Comet’s arm stretched over the top on the couch.

“Hell yeah,” Ace cheered as he won. Again.

The Wolfpack groaned as Blitz chuckled at his  _ cyare _ , leaning back into the couch. Broken sentences went around.

“Sonuva-”

“Eff you.”

“Motherf-.”

Arks didn’t say anything but he did slam his hand of cards on the table, obviously frustrated.

Comet shrugged, throwing his arm that wasn’t around Tup in the air. “His name is  _ literally _ Ace. I don’t know what you want me to tell you.”

“I still think he’s cheating,” Boost growled low in his throat.

Tup shook his head with a smile. “I’ve been watching him the whole time, Boost. He’s not cheating.”

Boost didn’t look convinced; like Ace somehow managed to get Tup to have an alibi for him. Tup just continued to laugh and watch as the others dealt another round.

“I’ll be right back. And play nice,” Comet announced, shooting his brothers a firm look.

Tup watched him leave, a smile appearing on his face. When he looked back to the others they were having a conversation without their words, just their eyes. Tup chuckled to himself; if he knew anything at all, it was that the Wolfpack was just as protective of their youngest as Torrent was. He had a feeling he knew what was coming next.

“I’m guessing this is the part where you grill and intimidate me,” Tup asked with a slight smirk on his face. They all shot him looks at different times, scrutinizing undertones were visible. 

Tup wasn’t about to try and stop them, he wasn’t  _ that _ suicidal. He would let Wolffe and the others question him, he knew they were just seeing what his intentions were.

Wolffe took the lead first. “How long have you and Comet been together again?”

“Four months,” Tup answered easily. He couldn’t forget, it was some of the best months of his life.

“Do you plan on staying with him? Or breaking his heart,” Ace asked coldly, not ready to let Tup break their kid’s heart.

Tup leaned forward onto his knees. “I love Comet. I would never break his heart by leaving him. I love him too much for that. I promise I will never stop loving him. Ever.”

The seven of them fell back into a silence that was short-lived. It was Blitz’s turn to ask a question, looking up from his hand.

“Do you plan on asking him to be your  _ riduur _ ? Or at least later down the line?” 

Tup almost choked on air. He turned his shocked eyes to Ace, who was looking at him while still dealing with the cards. He looked at all of them; seeing the same, open expressions.

“I don’t know. Maybe after this hell of war ends.” Tup shrugged. But Tup wasn’t finished as the others thought he would be.

“I don’t know what  _ he _ wants. Yes, I want a future with him, I would do anything to secure it. But I’m fine if he wants to stay where we are now. I do not want to force him into marriage if that is not what he wants. That would make us both suffer.”

Arks looked up, tilting his head to the side like a puppy. Tup could practically hear the unasked question.  _ How would that make you both unhappy? _

“If Comet marries me, and he’s not happy, that hurts him. I would be forcing him to love me in a way he doesn’t feel anything special. And that would hurt me; knowing he’s not happy. Then that marriage would end with us splitting and not coming back from it. We would both be heartbroken beyond belief.”

If the Wolfpack had  _ any _ doubt about Tup before, it had disappeared at his genuine answers. They liked Tup; especially Wolffe, considering he was Rex’s charge. They just wanted to make sure they  _ really _ liked him. And they approved.

When they heard Comet walking back, they smoothly jumped into a conversation.

Comet glared at his brothers, already knowing what had happened while he was gone. “You grilled him, didn’t you?”

“Yeah, I- _ We did no such thing Comet _ -thought so too.” Blitz strung together a jumbled mess of sentences.

“How dare you assume we would do that?” Boost asked, wounded.

“Even if we did we didn’t grill him too hard. He’s a tough kid,” Wolffe grumbled.

Tup laid across Comet’s lap, pushing Comet into a lying position. Comet was a little taken back but went with it.

“I love you,” Tup whispered with a smile.

Comet sighted, “They grilled you. Luckily for you, I have never questioned your love for me.”

Comet pulled him into a bone-crushing hug. Tup melted into him, relaxing after a bunch of unnecessary anxiety had piled onto him.

Comet distractedly braided his hair, putting it into a surprisingly neat braid, then undoing it and redoing it over and over again. Soon Comet had braided all of Tup’s hair at least twice. It was lucky for Tup and Comet that Tup had long hair and he could sit still for long periods of time. Comet could do anything but sit still.

“When the hell did you learn how to braid?” Wolffe suddenly spoke up.

“Wolffe, I have been able to braid since I was seventeen.”

Sinker chuckled, “You mean since you met Tup?”

Comet hesitated for a second, thinking, then he responded, “You know what? Yes, since I’ve known Tup, so screw you.”

The Wolfpack let out a string of laughter, and Tup chuckled into Comet’s neck. Tup remembered the first time he had tried to teach Comet how to braid. Comet was terrified that he was going to hurt Tup by pulling too hard or ruin any of his glorious locks. Tup had just laughed when Comet voiced his concern and he had to tell him it was okay, it didn’t matter to him. Besides, Hardcase was the only person who managed to hurt him while messing with his hair.

Tup concealed a yawn in Comet’s neck but Comet felt it against his skin.

“Are you ready to go to bed? You seem tired,” Comet whispered to him, stroking his shoulder.

“Sleep sounds wonderful right about now,” Tup mumbled, already standing up.

Comet led Tup by hand to the immediate Wolfpack’s barracks and stopped at Comet’s bunk. Comet climbed in first with Tup following after. Comet moved so Tup was facing away from the door, his back against Comet’s chest. Comet drew small, random shapes along Tup’s warm stomach, feeling the firm muscle under his fingertips.

Tup was about to fall asleep but something stopped him. He remembered that he wasn’t going to have a great day tomorrow. He almost stopped breathing.

Comet gripped his wrist. The aura in the room shifted from warm and comforting, to tense and dark in mere seconds. “Hey, why’d you tense up?”

Tup shook his head. “You know why.”

Comet settled down once again and pressed his lips to Tup’s shoulder. “Stop thinking about it for now. You can think about it tomorrow, that way I can help you without feeling like I’m going to pass out from exhaustion.”

Tup didn’t loosen his muscles. “Tup, I’m right here, I’ll protect you.” His boyfriend sighed.

The gentle, loving reassurance eased him for now. The two laid in silence for a couple of minutes, allowing the silence to swallow them up; only then did Comet and Tup both fall asleep.

When the Wolfpack entered the room again, with Arks, Blitz, and Ace—who had all been transferred to the Alpha company in the past few weeks—they quickly went to their respected bunks. They didn’t fall asleep just yet. They all stole glances at the two teenagers, smiling at the peaceful expressions written on their faces. 

  
  


“Tup it’s okay. We’re in the barracks. We’re not outside, babe,” Comet soothed.

Tup was tightly wound up at the moment, leg bouncing up and down in anxiety. The storm was said to hit their area that day but the Republic didn’t exactly give the people a time that was set in stone.

And as soon as Comet finished his sentence, thunder shook the compound, the sound reminded them all of the plasma cannons firing. Tup jumped into Comet’s arms, burying his face into Comet’s chest. Arks jumped as well, breathing picking up speed. The Wolfpack knew about Tup’s anxiety, but Tup didn’t know why Arks had the same reaction as him.

“Shhhhh, shhhhh,” Wolffe whispered to Arks, making his way towards him. If Tup wasn’t about to have an anxiety attack, he would be surprised at the kind tone Wolffe adopted so suddenly.

“ _ Udesii, udesii, _ ” Comet ordered softly, “You’re going to have an attack if you don’t breathe.”

Blitz looked over at the teenager’s section of the room; watching the youngest breathing heavily. Blitz took a seat on the other side of Tup. When Tup felt Blitz sit next to him, he shot him a confused look, which only got him a kind smile in return. Blitz reached for his hand, and Tup involuntary flinched his hand away. Instead of reaching again, he held his hand open for Tup to grab when he was ready.

Tup slowly took Blitz’s hand, his hand shaking slightly.

“Five things you see?” Blitz asked, scooting a few inches closer.

“Y-you, C-C-Comet, the fl-floor, W-Wolffe,” Tup stopped, struggling to focus. Blitz squeezed his hand once and Tup continued, “W-Wall.”

“Four things you feel?” Comet asked a different question, moving to rub circles on Tup’s spine.

“Your ha-hands. T-The couch. My b-blacks. Chest moving.” Tup didn’t care if he was giving short answers.

“Three things you hear?” Blitz asked more lightheartedly than before.

“Your voice. W-Wolffe’s breathing. The vents.”

“Two things you smell?”

“Sweat. My shampoo.”

Blitz finished it off, “One thing you taste?”

Tup froze. That word— _ oh stars, that word.  _ Tup’s pupils dilated, his heart pounded, he felt scared, so suddenly, at the word running off his own tongue like that. He dropped his head to Comet’s shoulder, gripping his arm tight. Comet ignored the pain. Blitz was concerned by the reaction. “What is it?” Blitz asked hesitantly.

“Blood,” Tup finally said in a whisper.

Comet knew what he was saying but Blitz didn’t like the word ‘blood’. What was its significance? What was so special about the word ‘blood’? The thing was that they all have seen blood plenty of times, sadly, it’s the way of life as a trooper fighting in a cruel war. At this point in age, Tup should be used to seeing blood. That may be Blitz’s opinion though, everyone grows at different rates. Tup’s reaction showed how afraid he was of blood, but why?

Comet held Tup flush against him, cradling the back of his head. 

“I know, I know,” Comet muttered. He didn’t realize the others were watching; that would prove to be a problem eventually.

“It wasn’t your fault, Tup.”

“Yes, it was,” tears streamed down his face. 

Comet didn’t get frustrated. “You didn’t know, love. You couldn’t have stopped it.”

Tup continued to breathe heavy, holding back sobs. The Wolfpack didn’t know what to do. They have never seen Tup so upset. Comet didn’t share the same sadness, his only expression was understanding.

“None of it was your fault. Not Peyton, not Riley, not any of them. You. Didn’t. Know,” Comet finished firmly. Tup shook his head, not listening to Comet. 

The Wolfpack was shocked into silence. The words settled in, hitting them all right in the chest. Considering the firm words Comet had used and the reaction every time Tup’s batchmates came up in conversation, they could easily connect the revealed dots. But that didn’t make sense to them; Tup had told them otherwise when they first met him.

“Com’,” Wolffe started warily, “What the hell do you mean?”

Comet realized he said too much. He cursed quietly under his breath, still holding Tup. He stayed silent, keeping Wolffe waiting for his answer. His highest priority at the moment was calming Tup down. He would give his brothers whatever honest answers they wanted, but only after Tup could breathe properly. 

Soon, Tup was only reduced to quiet tears, tucked into Comet’s neck. Comet finally met his older brother’s eyes, seeing so many questions within them.

“Loud noises trigger Tup’s PTSD and anxiety,” Comet simply said. It was technically the truth. Comet hoped they would leave it at that. 

They didn’t.

“Yeah, we got that but you know that’s not what we are asking,” Ace stated.

Comet held his gaze before turning his eyes down to the boy in his arms. He asked the silent question and got a nod in response. Comet answered, keeping his eyes on Tup in case he changed his mind midway through.

“During his first battle, a shell was aimed at his position. He got to cover in time and yelled for his batchmates to do the same. The shell landed, however, killing fifteen troopers as a result.”

Comet raised an eyebrow at Tup. If Tup shook his head or gave any indication of a ‘no’, Comet would stay quiet, but then the others would become suspicious and not let the topic be dropped. So going against what he had been trying to do for a year, Tup nodded.

“Four of the fifteen,” the others dreaded what was coming, “Were his batchmates. Peyton, Riley, Trigger, and Finn. Tup blames himself because he was the oldest of their batch.”

Wolffe, Sinker, Boost, and Arks looked gobsmacked. 

“He said….they were transferred,” Sinker said slowly, and in a small voice.

“I lied. It was just easier to lie to you then re-live the pain,” Tup murmured through tears.

Tup hugged Comet tighter, wiping tears away. Comet pulled him fully into his lap, stroking his hair. 

The Wolfpack eventually surrounded Tup. Even Arks managed to shakily walk towards him, still flinching every time pain struck. Ace guided Arks to sit in the middle with Tup, giving Arks someone to focus on other than the thunder. They stayed beside Tup until the storm ended.

* * *

Fives and Rex noticed Tup being reserved at the mess a few days later when Torrent and the 501st returned.

“What is it?” Rex asked when the others were out of earshot.

“I told the Wolfpack.” Tup stared at the table.

Fives was shocked. He thought Tup would never tell the others. Rex shared the same look. “And? What did they say?”

“They said they understood why I lied.”

Rex smiled to himself in relief. “See? There’s nothing bad about that.”

Tup decided to not respond but smiled nonetheless. He wasn’t depressed because he told the Wolfpack, he was upset about another secret; one that he had kept from  _ everyone _ . But that was a conversation for another day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Beta-reader/Editor- @AngelWars
> 
> I hope I didn't make you guys wait too long. Let me know if you have any... questions 😉
> 
> What did you think? Any requests, or something you want to see?


	31. Chapter 31-Secret Keeping

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arks get's hurt on a mission. But how long will he keep it a secret?

Arks winced in pain as he shifted his shoulder just a little too far. He let out a pain-filled breath of air, gripping his left arm tightly. 

Kix shot him an odd look, not expecting Arks to have such a reaction to moving his shoulder in the smallest capacity. Arks loosened his grip and lightly rolled his shoulder in small circles.

“Arks,” Kix gently got his attention, “are you hurt or something?”

Arks pointed to his left shoulder then pinched his fingers together so there was only a centimeter between his thumb and first finger.

Kix nodded, thankful that Arks was being truthful in some aspect. “Come to Helix or me if it gets worse. Understood?” Kix waited for Arks to nod before turning his attention back to one of Ponds’ men with a broken ankle.

 _For someone younger than me, he acts like one of my_ **_ori’vod_ ** _,_ Arks noted, playfully annoyed at Kix’s protective manner. But his thoughts were cut short by a throb of pain going through his shoulder and rib cage.

Arks had twisted the truth just a small bit. His shoulder and ribs had taken more than just a small beating; the medic and a few others got ejected from the transport that was descending to the planet after getting nailed with open fire from the enemy attackers. It resulted in them crashing onto rough terrain. Arks had gotten caught on a jagged piece of shrapnel momentarily, and the cold, sharp metal had gotten through the notorious gap in his armor. Arks’ ribs had been cracked from what he could tell and he sliced about ten inches of his rib cage open. 

Once Arks finally made an impact on the ground, his left shoulder took the brunt of the force, causing his shoulder to give out. Arks was almost positive he dislocated his shoulder based on the pain and soreness. The rib cage wound wasn’t life-threateningly deep, thankfully, but it was enough to force him to wrap his ribs after the battle was over. 

Arks had brushed everything off as if nothing hadn’t happened. The battle was two days ago. Now they were back on Coruscant. He convinced himself that he would heal within a few days, even though deep down he knew that wasn’t the case. 

  
  


Halfway through Ark’s shift, he began to feel weak; like he couldn’t hold his weight anymore. His head felt fuzzy and his ears were ringing quietly, but the ringing was adequately pissing him off. The ringing was also irritating his head.

The pain in his shoulder returned at full force. It was similar to the feeling of tearing a muscle in half. For all he knew, he may very well have torn multiple muscles, tendons, or ligaments.

His lungs were contracting tightly too. 

Arks had wondered if it was just his imagination or if the bandages were too tight, giving the impression that his lungs were failing him.

Kix was watching the other medic from afar, seeing Arks become tense with—what Kix would guess—pain.

 _Damn it, Arks. Why do you have to be such a stubborn_ **_karking_ ** _Wolfpack member?_

Kix approached Helix’s side, having the sneaky excuse of needing to give a patient more pain medication.

“Am I hallucinating or is Arks hiding something?” Kix asked Helix in a low tone, not meeting his eyes.

Helix frowned, caught off-guard by the sudden question. He glanced at Arks from the corner of his eye, who was on the other side of the medbay, and Helix saw no sign of pain coming from the Wolfpack medic. 

He didn’t look at Kix when he answered, trying to be inconspicuous as the other medic was moments ago, “Maybe you’re just reading into it too much.”

“You _know_ how many times we’ve caught Tup or Wooley hiding things from us; mostly injuries. I know Arks is hiding something,” Kix fired back stubbornly.

Helix sighed, deciding to amuse Kix seeing as he wasn’t going to drop the subject, “Okay, you may have a point.” Now that he thought about it, Kix could be right; if Wooley or Tup could hide things, who said Arks couldn’t do the same?

“Good, because I know I do.”

Helix finally turned to face the other medic, having finished with the 327th clone laying on the bed. 

“What do you think is wrong? Or what do you think he is hiding?”

Kix sighed, pushing himself away from the bed, “He said his shoulder was bothering him a little bit, but I don’t-” 

“Wait, he physically signed to you, his shoulder hurt?” Helix cuts him off.

Kix nodded, busying himself with other injured clones. Helix does the same.

“Then he’s fine,” Helix waved a dismissive hand.

Kix froze in his action to pivot and stare at Helix like he had three heads. “Are you kidding me?”

Helix held up his hands in surrender. “He told you what was wrong, and knowing you, you told him to come to us if it gets worse.”

Kix gritted his teeth but nodded.

“Then believe him. He told you, and we can’t even get him to do _that_ most of the time,” Helix leveled with him.

Kix groaned Helix’s name, looking at the ceiling. “But still, it doesn’t feel right.”

Helix grabbed Kix’s bicep in a comfortingly way. “You know how Arks feels about asking for help. Like I said before, we and the Wolfpack usually have to corral it out of him. If he told you it was only bothering him a small bit, he’s telling the truth. At least give him the benefit of the doubt.”

“But it took Jango a long time to get Arks to tell him what happened with the trainers on Kamino. Arks didn’t even know he ‘himself’ was lying,” Kix grumbled lightly.

Helix raised a dark eyebrow in question. He understood where Kix was coming from; with Jango taking a while to get Arks to open up, but not the part where Arks wasn’t aware of his own lying.

Kix saw his expression, and he rolled his eyes. “It’s Arks’ nature to lie or not be completely truthful, even if he doesn’t mean to. It’s like sometimes he lies and isn’t even aware that he _lied_.”

Helix thought for a moment, then he nodded in understanding. Then Helix went to drag Kix into the hallway. Kix tried to dig the heels of his feet into the ground, but after a pointed look from the slightly older medic, he went freely. Helix pushed his shoulders against the wall, only making sure he could read Kix’s face and not hurting him in any way. 

“Why are you so concerned about Arks? What’s wrong?” Helix suddenly asked.

Kix’s metallic, golden eyes widened in surprise. “What do you mean?”

Helix had noticed the past week that Kix had been more concerned about some things that normally don’t include him or was any of his business. 

“ _Vod_ , something is bothering you, so spill,” Helix stated bluntly.

Kix leaned his head back on the wall. “Both Arks and Tup always worry me, but now Tup’s acting strange and different and it’s scaring us a bit. I guess my fear just carried that concern over onto Arks.”

Helix would have to ask about Tup later. Right now, he needs to focus primarily on the Arks situation.

“Your shift is almost over. I will keep an eye on him for as long as possible, but he got stuck with the long shift. Would that make you feel a little more at ease?” Helix offered and asked.

Kix relaxed under his grip.“Please?”

Helix backed away from the wall with a curt nod, indicating that they were done talking. He looked down the wide hall and saw an Admiral stalking down towards them. 

“We should go, or someone isn’t going to be happy with us,” Helix suggested quickly, tilting his head to gesture to the Admiral. He wasn’t very fond of the clones, to say the least.

Kix glared at the man and followed behind his brother at the same time. “Don’t even get me started on that man.”

“Arks, you okay?”

Arks lifted his eyes, hair falling slightly across his face. He paused his rolling movement with his shoulder to look at Blitz. Arks had gotten off his shift and entered the barracks seeing at least a fourth of the battalion in the rec room. He had planned to tell Wolffe about his shoulder but he backed out last second.

“You’re messing with your shoulder a lot. Did you hurt it?” Blitz asked from where he was leaning on Ace’s shoulder.

Arks delayed his answer. His shoulder had gotten worse as well as his other wounds. He felt his head pounding from the lights. Arks nodded, turning his gaze down in shame, knowing he should've told his brothers sooner. He closed his eyes, sighing, trying to get his muscles to relax enough that it didn’t hurt to breathe.

He heard Wolffe get up from the other couch and his footsteps came to him. He turned his head away as Wolffe’s hands went to his shoulder. 

Wolffe gingerly pressed his thumbs around the joint of Arks’ shoulder, seeing how much pain Arks was in. Arks flinched hard when Wolffe put too much pressure on a certain spot towards the top of his shoulder. 

Wolffe frowned as he felt around Arks’ shoulder. “Why is it so tender? I can barely put any pressure on it without hurting you, Arks.”

Arks’ hands hovered in the air, then he hesitantly sighed, “ _I dislocated it.”_ The others saw him sign it and moved closer.

“Why didn’t you say anything?” Comet moved to the other side of Arks. Arks tried to shrug but he winced in pain, hand gripping his shoulder. Comet rubbed his good shoulder.

 _“It didn’t hurt until now.”_ He moved his good hand. 

“Arks,” Wolffe’s voice sounded disapproving, “The battle was two days ago. You should’ve come to us sooner.”

Arks didn’t respond, but he did partially lean into Wolffe, showing an apology in his own soundless way.

“Is it still out?” Sinker voiced from the right.

Arks nodded the smallest bit. Ace and Blitz came to kneel in front of the medic. 

“Do we pop it back in? What do we do?” Blitz asked. 

_“Pop it_ _back in._ ” Arks signed with a grimace.

Comet looked grim while the other’s faces looked downright heartbroken, not wanting to cause their brother any more pain; it was necessary. Putting dislocated joints back in place was a very painful thing; producing more pain, sometimes even more than the original injury gave off before. And Wolffe or Ace would have to hurt Arks, which they never wanted to do, but it must be done if they are to help him heal properly; especially since Arks has been through enough pain as is, physiologically and physically.

Wolffe nodded to Blitz, who took Arks’ rough hands in his, and gently placed one of his hands on the front of his shoulder and one on the back. 

“On three. One-” Wolffe snapped his front hand back, hearing and feeling a painful sounding pop. He purposely didn’t count to three in fear Arks would move while anticipating when he would put it back in place and Arks dislocate it worse. Arks jumped up from the couch in pain, seizing his shoulder in a white knuckle grip, taking a few steps forward. Blitz quickly brought Arks into his arms, hugging him tight around his midsection. 

“ _Udesii,_ easy, easy. I know it hurts,” Blitz whispered, leveling with the medic. Arks breathed hard through his nose, letting out a whimper of pain.

“You have to breathe, Arks,” Comet said lightly from the couch.

“You okay now?” Ace asked a few minutes later when Arks didn’t seem to be in as much pain. He got a small nod as an answer. He was grateful that the rest of the battalion had turned away from the scene, making conversation to block out what was happening with the Wolfpack.

Arks felt a shiver roll up his spine. He suddenly felt really cold. 

He saw Blitz frown. “What’s with the look?”

“Why are you so warm?” Blitz asked, looking down at Arks.

_Oh, so that's what that is._

Arks swiftly lifted his arms, putting distance between them, but he made it look he was about to lift his arms anyway.

 _“No reason,”_ Arks signed, emotionless

“Then why’d you step away?” Boost asked, standing as well.

 _“No reason,”_ Arks repeated.

“Then let me check,” Wolffe challenged, crossing his arms. 

Arks stepped back, starting to get annoyed. His brothers were always overprotective of him, considering he was mute because of past trauma. He wasn’t used to it; his batchmates were never this protective, it was like it was prohibited in their eyes. 

When he came into the 104th, it was odd for him. He had brothers that had no problem being physical or close with each other. Soft touches to the shoulders to the occasional tight hugs were normal to them. was like it came as second nature to them. Their protective nature was also normal daily. 

He wasn’t used to it.

And right now it was pissing him off. 

_“Wolffe, I’m okay.”_ Arks glanced at Wolffe; to everyone else, he was just looking at Wolffe, but the Commander could see the daggers being thrown at everyone, not just him. 

“Blitz, take him to the bunk room. It’s late anyway.” Wolffe said. 

_“I’m fine_.” Arks insisted.

Wolffe glared at him. “Then let me check for a fever. Your choice, _vod’ika_.”

Comet sighed from his spot on the couch, “Just let Wolffe check, Arks. He’s gonna keep asking.”

Arks didn’t say anything. Wolffe took an experimentally step forward, but Arks stepped away.

He didn’t bother signing anything. His selective mutism was sometimes a pain in the ass. He wasn’t able to convey his emotions to his brothers with his words, he could only use facial expressions. But he couldn’t change that because he didn’t speak for a reason. After he became mute he had only spoken once or twice, and Arks has been mute for almost half his life. So it was very rare when Arks spoke; those times usually happened because he was either too hurt to move his hands to sign or his emotions were at an all-time high and he wanted to say a few words to show how and what he was feeling. 

But today, Arks’ rage was the primary emotion to take over his brain.

Arks spun on Comet and yelled in his face, “I told you, I was fine! So kriff off!” 

Comet was about to speak but his jaw quickly snapped shut. Everyone, including the rest of the battalion, was staring wide-eyed at Arks, not believing he just said that let alone say _anything._ Everyone, not including Wolffe, had never heard Arks speak. It was odd to them, almost like it wasn’t natural.

Arks understood immediately what he said was hurtful and shocking but at the current moment, he didn’t kriffing care.

Comet looked like a fish out of water. He was staring at Arks in shock, and a sad look swam around in his Hazel eyes. Wolffe looked downright pissed.

Boost, Ace, and Sinker gently directed the pup of the Wolfpack out of the room, planning on distracting him. Wolffe and Ace stayed behind, crossing their arms and glaring at Arks. The others were also slightly disappointed at Arks for yelling at the Pup.

Arks solemnly sat down on the couch, head falling into his hands, shaking his hair out. He let out a slow sigh, feeling like shit on both inside and outside.

“You didn’t have to yell at him, ya know,” Ace growled, giving him a pointed look that showed how mad he was. Wolffe let his knuckles brush against Ace’s chest to get him to calm down.

“Arks, look at me,” Wolffe said calmly, being soft with Arks for the moment. He couldn’t promise to be as nice later. “I don’t care if you take your anger out on me, but we never take it out on him. Understood?”

Arks nodded, looking to the Commander, still seeing anger in his different colored eyes.

“Go to sleep. We’ll talk later.”

Arks stood up without a second thought and retreated to the barracks. He felt an unnatural pull on his ribcage, wincing in pain at the sharp stab to his side.

He collapsed on his bunk, struggling to summon the energy to pull himself up into a ball. He went in and out of sleep, mostly being woken up from the pain or being too hot. 

After an hour he heard the door slide open, and the rest of his brothers joined him in the room. Arks tucked his face into his pillow, hiding from the others. 

“Arks,” he heard Comet hesitantly call.

“Pup, leave him be for a while. Let him cool off,” Blitz suggested, pulling Comet to his bed. Ace kissed Blitz’s head before climbing into his separate bed.

Comet curled into Blitz’s arm, hiding away.

Blitz tapped his shoulder, trying to get him to look up.

“Are you okay? About earlier?”

Comet shrugged against his chest. “It just startled me. I didn’t expect it.”

Blitz felt bad; it was a shock to Comet. He had never heard Arks speak before, and the first thing he had to hear was the medic yelling at him. 

Blitz nuzzled his nose against Comet’s dark hair. “Do you want to talk about it?”

Comet shook his head no, closing his eyes. He told Blitz, “I’m tired. I think I’m just going to sleep.”

Comet shifted away from Blitz’s arms, planning on going back to his bunk, but another solid bulk on his back stopped him.

“Not happening, kid,” Ace’s voice said from behind him, his strong arms wrapping around Comet’s frame.

“But Ace-” Comet started, but was cut off by Ace squeezing his waist.

“No buts Comet. You’re sleeping with us tonight.” Ace left no room for argument. 

Comet submitted to his protective brothers, sinking into their hold. Blitz moved closer, covering Comet’s front. Ace gripped Blitz’s hand, putting their joined hands on Comet’s thigh, slowly falling asleep.

Arks turned in his sleep, sweat sticking to his skin. He opened his eyes, holding back a whine. He didn’t like to make noises at all; it made him feel embarrassed, but at the current moment, he was having a difficult time holding his whimpers back.

He struggled to get into a sitting position, heaving his body up. He brought his legs up to his chest, hiding his face in his knees. His head felt heavy, he could barely lift it. His muscles strained in protest as he tried to stand up. His ribs throbbed, the bandages felt hot and tight round them. He definitely had a fever, his skin was on fire.

Arks slowly walked over to the refresher, feeling bile rise in his throat. He entered the ‘fresher, the lights blinding him. The sick medic settled in front of one of the sinks, shaky arms bracing against the porcelain. 

Arks gagged lightly, hand covering his mouth. He brushed his sweaty hair back from in front of his face.

He strained his ears when he heard a noise outside the doors to the 'fresher. He focused enough to hear footsteps coming his way. 

_Damn it to hell. Damn it all._

“I knew something was wrong. What’s going on, Arks?” a voice sounded. 

Arks mentally identified the voice as Wolffe's and promptly kept his back turned away from his Commander, not wanting to see either his pity or disappointment or both.

Wolffe sighed, forcing himself off the wall to cross the room to get to his medic. His arms found their way around his hips. Wolffe felt Arks tense in his arms.

“You’re burning up,” Wolffe tsked, putting a cool hand on Arks’ head, feeling the heat burning under his skin.

Arks whined, chest heaving in pain. Wolffe rubbed small circles on his right hip. “Arks, just let it out. It’s just me, _vod’ika._ The sooner you relax, the sooner we can go back to sleep.”

Arks leaned his head back on Wolffe’s shoulder, exposing his neck. Tears slid out of his golden eyes, falling down his chin.

“I know, I know,” Wolffe reassured him.

Wolffe may seem like a hardass Commander, but when it came to his brothers, he became a different person. The only people that knew how caring he could be were his batchmates, the Wolfpack, and a few others like Ghost and Torrent. 

At first, he was scared to let anybody get close or comfort another brother other than his batchmates, but once he started helping his brothers, it became second nature.

Wolffe purposely tightened his arms around Arks’ stomach. Arks hunched over, stomach squeezing and cramping, saliva mixed with bile stringing out from between his lips. More bile came shooting out of his mouth. Wolffe scrunched his nose but continued to hold his younger brother.

Arks heaved for five minutes before his stomach stopped churning. His body was shaking with violent tremors; limbs and muscles weak. His complexion was pale, white tone seeping through his normally tan skin. His tears were long gone, leaving only dry tear tracks. 

Arks sunk back into Wolffe’s chest, turning forty-five degrees to the left. He felt Wolffe’s hand travel up his back resting on his ribs. He flinched and hiss quietly at the sudden pressure. Wolffe quickly pulled his hand away from his side.

Wolffe’s fingers ghosted the side of the Wolfpack medic’s ribs, feeling around. Arks was too tired to push his hands away or silently protest. He knew Wolffe had found the patches on his ribs. Arks weakly pulled the shirt of his blacks up, revealing multiple bacta patches covering his side.

Wolffe remained silent as he guided Arks out of the refresher. Arks barely made it halfway before he could no longer walk. Wolffe scooped him up into his arms, holding him close. Arks didn’t fight with him about it.

Wolffe set Arks down on the Commander’s bunk first before following close after. Wolffe sat up fully, with Arks curling around his legs. Arks’ head was lying on Wolffe’s legs, fighting to fall asleep. Wolffe saw his struggle and he started to stroke Arks’ hair. He would have never gotten away with giving this much attention to the medic. Arks was never fond of a lot of physical affection.

The Commander lifted the left side of Ark’s blacks to peer at the patches again. He put a large hand over where blood was visible and sighed lightly.

“I’m guessing you already know it’s infected?” Wolffe asked, running a hand over his shoulder blade. 

Arks nodded pitifully.

“Try and get some sleep, little brother.”

  
  


Wolffe swore he had never had such a horrible night ever before. 

Arks tossed and turned without even trying, his body taking control. Arks had thrown up two more times before he stopped at 0450 hours. Wolffe had gotten some sleep, but he definitely got more than the sick medic. He wondered if Arks got any sleep at all.

The rest of the Wolfpack was well-rested when they awoke. 

Comet cocked his head to the side as he sat up in Ace’s and Blitz’s arms when he turned and looked at Wolffe’s bunk. The Commander attempted to hide his exhaustion but his brothers' could see he was tired. They also saw Arks la motionless in Wolffe's lap.

“Is he okay?” Comet asked, concerned. Sinker and Boost both sitting up as well, hearing their youngest sound scared.

Wolffe shook his head, running his fingers through his dark hair. “Apparently he got hurt and didn’t say anything. His wound got infected and now he’s sick.”

Ace groaned, “Damn it, that sounds like him.”

Blitz nodded in agreement. “Don’t we have training today?”

Wolffe hesitated before cursing under his breath, “Yes, any volunteers to stay behind today?” He asked. 

Blitz immediately stepped forward, sitting on the other side of Wolffe’s legs. His hand curled in Arks’ hair, brushing back the few stray hairs that fell in front of his eyes. Wolffe helped dislodge Arks from his leg and transition to Blitz’s. Blitz smiled lightly when Arks shifted closer to him. 

The Wolfpack left the room to go to the training room, but Ace stopped in the doorway. He turned around to look at his _cyare_ with a question in his eyes.

Blitz rolled his eyes fondly. “Ace’ika, I’ve got him. Don’t worry; if you keep worrying you might lose your reputation of being a badass.”

Ace glared at the jab but retreated out of the door. Blitz shook his head as Ace left, turning his attention back to his brother in his lap. Arks was frowning in his sleep like he was in pain. Blitz comfortingly stroked his head, talking in Mando’a under his breath.

He let out a sigh of relief when Arks settled down. 

Blitz, Ace, and Wolffe were some of the last clones to learn fluent Mando’a from either an older brother or Jango himself. Wolffe was under Jango’s supervision; Jango had been the one to take Wolffe’s batchmates under his care. Jango taught Ponds, Bly, Wolffe, Cody, and eventually Rex, Mando’a. Ace, Blitz, and Arks learned mostly from their older brothers or other training squads. 

Then, Arks went mute, and he no longer spoke Mando’a, so his older brothers always tried to say things in Mando’a to him to remind him of the language. Younger clones like Wooley, Comet, and Tup never learned the language fluently, unless they did know and just chose not to use it, but they knew phrases and basic words.

Arks shifted again, and he let out a quiet sound of distress. Blitz shook his shoulder, guessing he was caught in a fever dream. 

When the older clone woke up, he shot up in Blitz’s arms. Blitz instantly pinned Arks’ arms to his side, not trusting Arks to not hurt himself. 

“Hey, hey, it’s okay. It’s just me. Stop struggling, it’s okay,” Blitz whispered in his ear. 

Arks tried to break out of his brother’s arms but when the blood stopped rushing to his head he realized it was Blitz who was holding him. He went limp in his arms, breathing heavily.

Blitz moved his arms so he could see in Arks’ golden amber eyes. “Arks’, breathe. If you don’t breathe, you are going to have an anxiety attack.”

Blitz cupped his brother’s face in his hands, calloused fingers against his soft skin, holding him steady. Arks gripped his hands with a vice hold, breathing deeply through his nose.

“There you go. You’re okay, _ori’vod._ You’re in the barracks, okay? You’re safe,” Blitz said soothingly. 

Arks leaned his head to rest against the sharpshooter’s collarbone. Blitz laid on the bed, pulling Arks over top of him. Blitz wiped tears that escaped Arks’ eyes. 

“Try to sleep, Arks. I’ll be right here.” Blitz pressed a kiss to Ark’s fevered brow. 

Arks nodded against his chest, already feeling drowsy. Within five minutes, Arks was fast asleep once again.

  
  


Wolffe observed Arks’ ribcage. He put pressure gently on certain spots on the bones, hearing Arks hiss or whine at the pain. He was only feeling through the blacks, he didn’t know how bad the bruises were, for all he knew they could have gotten worse.

Arks was feeling less sick but that didn't mean he couldn't feel more of the pain from his side and the ache in his shoulder. He jumped when Wolffe accidentally hit the gash on his side.

Wolffe ripped his hands away, wincing himself. “Sorry, ni ceta, ni ceta.”

Wolffe went to get the medpack, pulling out four bacta patches. Wolffe gazed around, seeing Comet holding Tup close to his chest, talking in his ear. “Can you two come over here?” Wolffe whispered. 

Tup and Comet perked up and quickly came over.

“What’s up, Wolffe?” Comet asked. 

“I don’t know if I’ll have to stitch this or not. So if I do, I’ll need you two to help,” Wolffe explained, already pulling back the old bandages.

Comet winced when he saw the damage done to his brother. 

Tup gasped and covered his mouth with his hand, “What the hell?!”

“Yeesh,” Wolffe muttered, prodding around the skin. “I don’t think I’ll have to stitch it. I’m just going to wrap it again with the patches. That sound good to you?”

Arks nodded, leaning into Comet’s hand that was resting on his cheek. Arks didn’t look down as Wolffe tightly applied the patches. Tup stroked Arks’ knuckles with his thumb, staying silent while Comet talked in a hushed tone to him.

When Wolffe was finished, he patted Arks’ good shoulder and stood up. Comet and Tup followed but Arks reached and grabbed Comet’s hand. Wolffe understood what Arks was doing and he smiled at Tup and gestured for the Torrent teen to follow him.

Comet sat back down, facing Arks with confusion.

_I’m sorry about the other day. I shouldn’t have yelled at you._

Comet looked shocked at the apology. “Arks, it’s okay. It just surprised me that’s all. I know that sometimes when emotions are high you’ll speak. I get it.”

Arks didn’t look convinced. _Still, I’m sorry._

Comet leaned forward and allowed Arks to wrap him in a hug. Arks held him for a long moment, then he pulled away, standing, with Comet following.

Comet laced their fingers together, smiling light-heartedly.“Come on, let’s see if Ace wins at Sabacc, _again."_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I missed an upload last week! I went on vacation and didn't have time to write. But I hoped you enjoyed the Arks fluff. Let me know if you have any questions.
> 
> Beta reader/Editor- @AngelWars (Ao3)
> 
> What do you think? What do you want to see?


	32. Chapter 32-Sensory Overload

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wooley has sensory overload away from his brothers.

Wooley grimaced in pain, his head giving an odd, painful throb. Waxer shot him a look, running his eyes over his body, looking for any physical injury. Waxer gently nudged Boil in the ribs, gesturing to the young adult across the table. Boil’s gaze was the same as Waxer’s.

Wooley felt a few pairs of eyes on him, making the hair on the back of his neck stand up. He slowly looked to the two ARF troopers in front of him. Then he rolled his eyes at the scrutinizing tones in their golden eyes.

They were sitting directly across from him, all of them sitting at their mess table. Cody was to his left, listening in.

“Would you two calm down? I’m fine,” Wooley groaned. 

“Still, what was the wince for?” Waxer pointed his metal fork at him.

“Nothing, my head just kinda pulsed,” Wooley explained.

“Mhm,” Boil hummed, unconvinced. 

Wooley is a medic; it’s his nature to help, soothe, and heal others. But that also meant he put his own health on hold to make sure his brothers were okay. He would hide injuries or sickness—much like Helix does— but it’s worse because Wooley is young, plus he’s forming a bad habit in his brothers’ eyes. They don’t want Wooley to hide things from them because they may not always be there to help him when he reaches his breaking point.

There had been multiple times that the others caught Wooley hiding injuries, or hiding the fact that he was sick. They would reprimand him after sitting him down. Then they would help him any way they could. The truth was that Wooley was always honest to an extent.

“Are you sure it’s nothing?” Cody asked for clarification, knowing Wooley was more likely to tell him the truth than Waxer and Boil.

“I promise.”

It wasn’t a half-truth. It was a complete bare-faced lie.

He managed to survive through training, only taking a few hits that made him dizzy as hell. He had Waxer and Boil trailing him the whole time, watching him from afar behind his back.

Wooley finished his fifth spar and sat down with the other teenagers, who were in a corner of the room away from the older clones. Tup was resting his head on Comet’s shoulder, seemingly very detached from reality and tired. One of Ponds’ younger troopers, Zeke— who was nineteen and a few months older than Wooley—and one of Bly’s kids, Jake—who was older than Comet, but younger than Wooley— was also seated with them. 

Wooley distractedly rubbed his temples, closing his eyes so his vertigo would hopefully leave. Jake’s rare, icy blue eyes gave him a concerned look, his hand itching to touch Wooley’s shoulder; who looked like he was about to sway in place.

“Are you dizzy or something?” Comet spoke from his spot on the floor.

“A little bit,” Wooley continued his motions with his thumbs.

Zeke pulled on his shoulder, forcing the younger teenager to rest on his shoulder, all the while Jake started pressing on the pressure point between his thumb and index finger.

“Close your eyes for a bit if you need to,” Zeke said softly.

Wooley obeyed appreciatively, unwinding his tight muscles against Zeke’s side. He went into limbo, not sleeping, but also not fully conscious. When he opened his eyes again he noticed that the room wasn’t spinning like a _kriffing_ tornado anymore. 

Tup remained against Comet, but now slept in between his legs and curled on his side, resting his head on Comet’s chest. Comet was leaning back against the metal wall. Wooley guessed he did it so he could support Tup better.

Wooley also noted that it was odd for Tup to be sleeping; it was the middle of the day. Tup was usually active during this time.

Comet noticed Wooley’s calculated eyes on his sleeping boyfriend. 

“He’s having trouble sleeping,” Comet explained to him, startling Wooley, “It’s either nightmares that wake him up or he can’t shut his brain off. I have been trying to get him to catch up on sleep for days now.”

Wooley shifted on Zeke’s broad shoulder. “How long has that been going on?” He asked.

Comet grimaced at his answer before he even answered, “Two and half weeks, give or take.”

Wooley wasn’t even concerned from a medical standpoint.e was concerned from an older brother’s standpoint. He also appreciated the distraction.

“Is he eating?”

“Yeah, but we usually have to remind him to eat his food,” Comet growled low in his throat at the thought of Tup suffering.

Wooley hummed in understanding, running his nails over his gently jostled hair from sparring, getting the knots out. He finally felt his body give him a break from the pain

If only he knew how much pain he was in for next.

  
  
  
  


Wooley entered the medbay for his shift with Kix and Arks, feeling very sick. He was slightly pale, hands shaking violently, but he was able to cover it up. His head was also pounding like a band of drummers went off harmonically in there.

_Shake it off, damn it. There’s no time for this._

He mentally steeled himself, trying to hide it from his other brothers.

Over the next few hours, he had received multiple single glances from other medics. Wooley got five stares and half-glares from Arks, and about ten from Kix. He knew he was going to get a talking-to from Kix sooner or later. Wooley just didn’t know if he could hold up his act for too long.

Wooley sat in a chair, filling out paperwork mindlessly that all medics had to fill out. It was a very long and exhausting process.

The door slid open with a quiet hiss.

“Wooley,” a voice called from behind him.

 _Fuck me. I’m going to get my shebs handed to me if he catches on_.

“What is it, Kix?” he asked, not looking up from his paperwork. He knew it was Kix by his stern tone of voice.

Kix didn’t answer, instead, his footsteps continued their path forward.

Kix’s hand twisted him around by the shoulders to study his eyes; he felt Wooley jump slightly under his hand. He ignored the flinch for now.

The 501st medic frowned, leveling a soft, questioning glare to the 212th medic. “Are you sick?”

The younger 212th medic’s complexion was slightly pale but pale enough for Kix to take note of it. He also seemed to flinch when he looked into the light or moved his head a certain way

“No, Kix. Cody, Waxer, _and_ Boil already asked me this morning. I’m just tired,” Wooley sighed, sounding convincing.

Wooley wasn’t trying to blow smoke up his ass but he felt like he lied pretty well because Kix backed off. Well, he backed off, but with hesitation.

“Fine, fine. But I still outrank you, and I won’t hesitate to send you to the barracks if I see fit,” Kix threatened, but with good intentions.

Half an hour after Kix left, Wooley’s posture dropped. His head fell into his hands, the bright lights bothering his head. He decided to get up and go to the refresher, feeling nausea rise in his stomach.

He managed to slip out of the medbay doors unceremoniously. Arks was busy with a trooper and Kix had his hand full so he (with luck) just walked out the door. He slowly made his way to the ‘fresher, thanking anyone from above that no one else was there. He dropped to his knees in front of one of the toilets, his body giving out. His stomach flipped painfully, the lights warping his line of vision. 

He was not going to have a good time.

  
  


Arks looked around the room, seeing they were missing a medic. He had been working with a 501st trooper with a broken collarbone for a few hours, very rarely looking up from his patient. It would’ve been easy for Wooley to slip pass under his detection even with Arks’ sharp hearing. But Wooley should have been there—his shift wasn’t over yet.

Arks knew the younger medic had been doing paperwork earlier but he should’ve been done by now and out in the medbay helping Kix and Arks with injured troopers.

He snapped his fingers to Kix, getting his attention. The medic looked up from three beds down.

 _“Where did the kid go?”_ Arks signed in subtle concern.

Kix frowned, looking around for himself, not seeing the younger Ghost medic anywhere. “I don’t know. I talked to him like forty-five minutes ago.”

Arks showed his distaste for that statement, squinting at Kix.

Kis tried to distract himself. He successfully made himself busy for a few minutes, but his brotherly instincts wouldn’t leave him alone. It was a tingling sensation that rode up his spine with an energetic urgency. Kix stood up with a huff. He was certain Arks would do the same if Kix hadn’t for him.

“I’m going to look for him. I can’t take it anymore,” Kix alerts him, “Any idea where he would be?” He asked while facing Arks.

Arks shrugged. He hadn’t talked to Wooley all day. 

As Kix began to, Arks signed again, _“Check the ‘fresher.”_

Kix nodded at the suggestion with a small smile of thanks, already for the door. Kix taps the cold keypad with his fingertip. He went to the nearest ‘fresher, praying Wooley was there. He knocked on the door, not hearing a response. Kix pressed the keypad, opening the door. At one glance he saw a figure crouched in front of a toilet, and lo and behold, it was Wooley.

Kix sighed sympathetically and approached the obvious sick teenager. He went down on his knees beside Wooley, placing a hand on his back. 

“What's going on, kid? Since when were you sick?” Kix asked in a light-hearted tone dripping with concern. He steadily stroked Wooley’s back.

“I d-didn’t f-feel sick. All I h-had was a h-headache,” Wooley whined lightly to Kix.

Kix clicked his tongue, “Well you look sick to me, kiddo.”

He was about to say more but Wooley started throwing up. Wooley doubled over in pain, clutching his stomach. Wooley started crying as the acid burned the back of his throat. 

“Shhhh, shhhh. It’s going to hurt more if you cry. It’ll be over sooner if you calm down,” Kix reasoned with the other crying medic. 

Wooley clenched his eyes closed, hand gripping his dark hair tight. Kix gently covered Wooley’s other hand with his, drawing circles with his thumb on the outside of Wooley’s palm.

Wooley finished emptying his stomach, looking to Kix. His golden eyes were shiny with tears that threatened to spill over. His body was curled in on itself. The pain was evident in his posture, and his face was flushed with a salmon-pink tone. _A fever._ Kix recognized the signs with sympathy. Wooley’s whole body was trembling, like a shaken baby rattle, from the effort of holding himself up on his two palms. His hands shook the most though. And the shaky, raspy sound bouncing off the walls was his rapid breaths, ones he couldn’t get in. 

“ _Easy_ Wooley. I’m right here.” Kix turned Wooley so he could face him fully. He was about to direct the teen’s slightly fevered head onto his armored chest but Wooley beat him to it. He pressed hard against Kix’s chest, hiding from the bright, fluorescent lights that pierced his vision above him. 

He cried into Kix’s chest, hot tears rolling off his chin and dripping to the floor. His body was full of various amounts of pain. All he wanted was his older brothers and to sleep a century to hide from everything. Wooley turned his head to the side but quickly turned it back into Kix’s chest, whining in pain.

“Are the lights bothering you?” Kix asked, whispering into his ear, trying to be as quiet as he can. 

The fluffy-haired teen whimpered, not willing to move his head and cause it to pulse in pain again.

Kix carefully guided Wooley’s head away from his chest and began to stand up, but was abruptly stopped by Wooley clinging to his ribs. Kix halted in his tracks, stabilizing Wooley once again.

“Love, I have to stand up to turn the lights off.”

“Don’t leave,” if Wooley heard the pet name, he didn’t mention it, “Please d-don’t leave me.”

“Okay, okay,” Kix cooed comfortingly, not wanting Wooely to get hysterical.

Kix sat back down, with his arms full of a crying, and very emotionally and physically unsteady teenager. He needed to turn the lights off so Wooley could calm down, but he didn’t have the heart to leave Wooley even if it was for a few seconds. Kix always felt like he was taking a bullet to the heart when his younger brothers begged him to stay with them. 

Wooley whimpered and whined, holding Kix’s waist tight. His vision see-sawed from side to side even as he was sitting down, making him feel nauseous again.

Kix titled his head down to look upon the younger medic. “Are you going to throw up again?”

Wooley swallowed the bile down, stubbornly shaking his head.

“Okay.” Kix didn’t trust his answer but nuzzled his soft hair with his nose anyway. He reached for his comm from his belt. “Do you want Helix?”

Wooley shook his head. “C-Cody.” 

Kix stroked his shoulder to give him physical comfort while he called Cody, using only audio in case he was in an officer meeting. He patiently waited, hushing Wooley’s whimpers. Finally, Cody’s voice flooded the ‘fresher cubicle. 

_“Cody here.”_

Wooley winced and jumped at the low volume, surprising Kix, to say the least.

When Kix answered in a low voice, “It’s Kix. I need you to come down to the ‘fresher near the med-bay. I have Wooley in my arms right now, and I think he’s sick. But I can go into more detail when you get here.”

 _“Is he okay?”_

Kix smiled at the protective tone in his older brother’s voice. “Yeah, he’s just upset right now. I would have come and gotten you, but he won’t let me up.”

 _“Where are you again?”_ Cody needed a detailed confirmation of their location.

“To the right side of the medbay, the first ‘fresher door.”

The call ended immediately., Kix slipped his comm back into his belt. His arms slid around Wooley’s trembling waist once again. He may not be with Ghost Company but he cares for all vode; that includes Wooley. If anything, the fact that Wooley is nineteen makes Kix want to care more. He was close to Wooley’s age when he was assembled into the 501st Legion and distributed into the war. He sympathized with the kid; sometimes as a medic, he couldn’t do anything but watch his brothers die.

Wooley started to struggle in his arms, feeling too many overwhelming senses attack him at once. Kix tightened his grip, knowing Wooley would try to move away and end up hurting himself in the process. 

“Wooley? Wooley, calm down, calm down. Stop moving _ad’ika_. Cody will be here soon, I promise.”

Kix waited patiently as he humanly could, but he was praying for the Commander to hurry his ass up. Wooley wasn’t going to last much longer without his older brother, who he was always clingy to when he was upset.

There was a knock at the metal door, announcing Cody’s arrival. Not even a second later the Commander was in view. He took one look at Wooley and felt his heart shatter into pieces.

“Oh, Wool,” Cody cooed lightly.

Kix handed Wooley into Cody’s arms and remained seated on the ground. He watched with fondness as the Commander hugged the younger clone close to his chest, pressing his lips to Wooley’s brow.

Cody looked to Kix for some answers, all the while stroking Wooley’s hair.

“I’m guessing it’s a sensory overload. There was just too much going on at the same time and he freaked out. He should be better in a few hours, but it might last longer. It all depends on how he handles it.”

Cody looked down at the teen in his chest. “Is there anything else we can do to slow it down?” Cody asked quietly as possible.

Kix sighed, thinking for a brief moment. “Just the basics; turn the lights off, don’t touch him unless he wants to be touched, keep the bunk or rec room quiet. Things like that.”

Cody nodded.

It was typical for a brother to get overwhelmed and need to be alone or with one other person. Most times they prefer being in a quiet room with the lights off. It’s just the way it was. Cody carefully picked Wooley up, bridal style, hugging him to his chest. Wooley laid his head on Cody’s collarbone. 

“Comm me if this gets worse and Helix isn’t there,” Kix put in an underlined order, masked partially by a caring expression, “the last thing we need is for him to get worse. Then his suffering would only be prolonged and get worse.”

Cody said his thanks to Kix. They parted ways after Kix assisted him with the door. The 212th Commander placed one hand over Wooley’s ear as a group of clones walked past, unaware of the younger’s pain. One of them steered the others clear of their straight path, giving Cody a nod. Cody nodded back in thanks. He didn’t want Wooley to deal with loud, unaware brothers.

He had messaged Waxer and Boil earlier, telling them to get the others quiet, and Cody gave them a brief description of what was happening. He just prayed he could get to the barracks without having to yell at the others.

Wooley got out of Cody’s arms, stating he was feeling less dizzy. Cody didn’t want to let him walk, but it would be much easier to let him do it then fight him on it. 

“At least let me help you,” Cody bargained with him.

Wooley nodded, not about to refuse help from his trusted brother. Cody gripped his upper arm, helping him stay steady. Wooley still hid his face in Cody’s neck along the way.

Cody smiled lightly at the sight of his batchmates, walking down the hall, engaging in loud conversation. Cody quickly covered Wooley’s exposed ear, whispering to him what was happening down the hall.

Rex made eye contact with his ori’vod and read the silent stare. _Be quiet._ Rex turned to his batchmates; Ponds, Bly, and Wolffe, as they got closer to Cody and Wooley.

“Guys, guys, quiet down. I think something is wrong with Wooley. Just talk to Cody quietly,” Rex warned them.

As they approached the pair they knew something was very wrong. 

“Hey, Codes? What’s up with the kid?” Ponds asked, crossing his arms.

Cody sighed, stroking Wooley’s hair gently, “Sensory overload. Kix found him in the middle of it,” he directed the second half of his explanation to Rex.

“Poor kid,” Bly commented, sympathizing for him.

“Is he going to be okay?” Wolffe asked, with rare kindness in his voice; but in his defense, Wooley’s just a kid.

“He will be, it just might take a while for him to calm down.”

Wooley sleepily moved his face to the side, away from Cody’s neck, gazing straight ahead, then nuzzling Cody’s broad shoulder. Rex and the others had to hold back a noise of affection for the tired teenager Wooley’s fluffy hair fell in front of his tired, golden eyes.

“Get some rest kid,” Rex finished, rubbing Wooley’s shoulder lightly in comfort. 

As they walked away, Wolffe suddenly surprised his batchmates by saying, “Not going to lie, that kid is _kriffing_ adorable.”

Rex’s jaw hit the floor. “Did you just say that? Oh, my gods. Everyone, Wolffe has a heart for someone other than the Wolfpack!”

Wolffe rolled his eyes, shoving Rex’s shoulder. “I have a heart. And I’ll say it again, the kid is adorable. Hell, all the teenagers are adorable when they’re tired.”

  
  


Wooley winced at the piercing sound of the door opening.

Cody thumbed his shoulder. “Shhhh, it’s okay.”

The Commander didn’t even pay his other brothers a single glance as they entered the room, his main focus was on his baby brother. Cody dragged Wooley to his bunk, sitting him down. He stripped Wooley’s armor, being as careful as he could.

“Do you want to sleep, Wool’ika?”

“Mhm.” 

Wooley laid his head on Cody’s pillow, burying his face into it. Cody tucked the covers around him, then stood up. He turned the lights off, as he left the room he didn’t close the door so they could hear the teenager.

As Cody entered the rec room, Ghost made room for him on the couch. He collapsed on the couch, head falling into Waxer’s lap.

“Hey there, _ori’vod_ ,” Waxer greeted with a small smile. 

Cody tried to smile back but he was too tired. First, he had an early meeting, and now he had to deal with a sick teenager. He promptly melted on top of Waxer—like butter in a sizzling, hot pan—as the ARF trooper stroked his hair soothingly

“Is the kid okay? What exactly happened?” Crys asked from his spot on the floor.

“He’s having a sensory overload as we speak. There’s not much we can do except just make him as comfortable as possible.”

From there, the group sat there while having lax conversations for a while. They discussed who would stay awake with Wooley first and then who would take over. Helix agreed to take the first night shift if Wooley were to wake up, as he was the most equipped, seeing as he was a medic.

Cody stayed in Waxer’s lap, muscles slowly but surely unwinding. Boil was in between Waxer’s legs, resting against the couch with Helix to his right. Crys was on the other side of Waxer, eyes slipping closed.

A distant whimper plunged them all into silence. Crys’ eyes open. Cody was about to get up but Boil pushed him back down, “I’ve got it, Cody.”

Boil stood up from the ground, with Waxer’s supportive hand resting on his back so he didn’t fall backward. Boil stepped over Crys’ legs, swiftly making his way to their barracks. He hoped Wooley didn’t accidentally hurt himself; he assumed Cody didn’t check for weapons in the room.

He peered into the room, looking around. Wooley wasn’t in any of the bunk beds, which confused Boil. He cautiously moved into the room, looking around again with a vigilant gaze. He looked in one of the dark corners of the room and his eyes fell upon a huddled figure backed into the said corner.

“Love,” Boil sighed, feeling his heart drop. He sat two feet away from Wooley, not overwhelming him. 

Wooley’s knees were glued to his chest, arms wrapped around them. His head was against the wall, tears streaming down his face from wide eyes that stared straight ahead. Wooley raised his right hand up and wipe the tears away, but they kept coming down in clear rivets. 

Boil pulled Wooley’s hand into his lap, lacing their fingers together. Boil's thumb rubbed big shapes all over his knuckles. 

“It’s okay to cry, Wooley. You know we won't judge you if you cry."

Wooley looked at his brother through his thick, wet lashes. His normally happy, golden eyes were sad and bloodshot; breaking Boil’s soul. Wooley fidgeted in place every few seconds, feeling uncomfortable with the number of sounds he was hearing and the things touching him. The only thing he was comfortable with was his hand in Boil’s, everything else he hated.

“Do you want me to keep talking?” Boil asked, knowing there were a lot of sounds happening, mostly coming from the battalion’s bunk room.

Wooley nodded through the tears, resting his head back on his knees.

Boil began to talk in a low volume to Wooley, aimlessly talking. Wooley listened intently. He never took his eyes off his brother. Wooley would flinch sometimes, but Boil would squeeze his hands, grounding him back to reality. 

Wooley doesn’t know how it happened, but he ended up laying in Waxer’s bunk. Sometimes Wooley shared it with Waxer whenever Waxer needed comfort or vice versa. 

Wooley was placed on Boil's chest in between his legs. He listened o the steady symphony of Boil’s heartbeat.

“I don’t feel good, _ori’vod_ ,” Wooley lamented, holding onto Boil tightly.

Boil tsked in sympathy, “I know, I know, _vod’ika._ We can’t do much to help you. You’re just going to have to wait it out. I’m sorry, kiddo.”

Wooley let out a dry sob. Boil petted his hair, pressing a short kiss to the curls bouncing on Wooley’s head. Wooley sighed, back heaving in pain. He tried to contain cries and sobs as best as possible.

His body was aching terribly and his stomach contracted violently. The loud noises and his headache were making him feel like his intestines were being used as a jump rope; swinging round and round into a tight line, then pulled. A wave of heat went through Wooley's body, making him flush in discomfort.

Wooley cringed as he heard footsteps walking towards the door. It could’ve been three of his _vode_ or twenty of them and he wouldn't know the difference. Rough hands covered his ears, muffling the sound tremendously.

He yelped when different arms wrapped around his body, startling him. Boil’s hands pulled away from his head.

“Just me, Wool’ika,” his Commander’s voice whispered in his ear, his strong arms squeezing tight momentarily. 

Wooley relaxed in his arms now that he knew it was Cody, he didn’t need to worry about anything. He was placed on a bunk that he guessed was Cody's, curling up as a body pressed up against his back. 

“This okay, Wooley?” Cody questioned, not desiring to make Wooley more uncomfortable than he already was.

“Yes,” Wooley whispered but flinched when Cody’s hand unexpectedly brushed up against his spine.

“Sorry,” Cody apologized swiftly, crossing his arms so he didn’t hit Wooley again. Wooley turned on his other side, crossing his arms as well, facing Cody. 

His eyes were bloodshot; his tears never seemed to completely disappear. His hands were shaking as they gripped his own arms. His knees were up to his chest, and his hair partially covered his eye.

“How’re you feeling?” Cody asked. 

“Bad.”

Cody sighed, he hadn’t expected anything else. “Is there anything I can do?”

Wooley nodded. “Hold me?”

Cody swore he felt his insides melt. “Yeah, of course, baby brother.”

Wooley’s lips quirked into a smile at the best of his ability. He pressed his head onto Cody’s warm collarbone, feeling his heartbeat on his hand that slithered its way up the Commander’s chest. Cody shivered at the touch but remained still. The Commander drew Wooley closer—so close he could practically absorb him— allowing the younger clone to place his right ear over Cody’s chest where his heartbeat was located. Cody’s hand slowly went over Wooley’s exposed ear, blocking out everything but the heartbeat.

“Is he doing okay?” a clone's voice spoke. 

Cody turned his head to look for the brother who spoke to him. Helix was propped on one elbow, eyes narrowed in concern.

“Nope. He still feels like shit. I don't know what to do. Any ideas?”

Helix sighed, still looking at the kid resting on Cody’s chest. He had commed Kix after Cody had gotten back with Wooley, and they could come up with nothing practical to help the young medic. “No. Waiting it out seems to be the only thing we can do. I mean, I can knock him out if it gets out of hand, but I don’t exactly want to.”

Cody fell silent, stroking Wooley soft hair slowly. 

Helix went back to laying down, still facing his older brother, “I’ll get up with him if he wakes up.”

  
  


Wooley jumped awake, breathing heavily. He was holding onto Cody’s arm tight. Cody had already stirred awake in front of him. The older trooper’s amber eyes were tired but alert. Wooley jumped again as someone else’s hand grazed his shoulder.

“Calm down, Wooley. Calm down,” Helix voiced quietly in order, pulling Wooley into a sitting position.

The medic was entirely confused. He was startled awake, gasping for air. He honestly wondered if Cody had accidentally blocked his airways. Wooley just noticed the tears falling on his hands. His lungs ached, he sucked in a breath. 

“There you go, kiddo. Just breathe,” Helix coached him.

Wooley nodded shakily, tightly putting his nails in Cody’s arm. 

“What happened?” he asked through tears.

“Panic attack,” Cody whispered in his ear, carding his fingers through Wooley’s soaked hair. “You started thrashing around, and it looked like you couldn’t breathe. Waxer accidentally made a loud noise, and you freaked out.”

Helix jumped in, “We didn’t want to touch you until you were conscious. I didn’t want to freak you out even more. You looked terrified.”

Wooley nodded, then suddenly winced in pain, fingers shooting up to his temple. His hand slid off of Cody’s arm, cradling his head. He groaned in pain, slowly folding over to place his head on his knees.

“What is it?” Helix frowned, hand drifting to the nape of Wooley’s neck.

“It hurts so bad,” Wooley mumbled. 

“Your head?”

“Mhm.”

Helix pulled Wooley legs so they dangled over the bed. His cool hands pulled Wooley’s away, his hands taking their place. The older medic methodically made circles on Wooley’s temples, his other fingers buried slightly in his brother’s hair.

“I can give you a downer if you really need it,” Helix said, giving Wooley an option.

Wooley shook his head, not wanting to deal with the drug.

Helix sighed, lifting Wooley’s head, “Wooley, I think you should take it. It’ll help you sleep and you won’t be in pain.”

Wooley didn’t speak, he just stared at Helix, eyes begging him to just let him try and sleep on his own. Helix made his eyes firm.

“I’m pulling rank, Wooley. You’re taking the downer.”

Everyone else in the room was shocked. Helix very rarely pulled rank, especially on Wooley, so they now understood how worried he was for their brother.

Helix went to rummage through the spare medpack in the barracks while Cody held Wooley’s back against his chest.

Wooley hiccuped lightly, tears finally falling, the pain becoming too much. Cody’s thumbs brew small circles on his hip bones, pulling him back to lay down on the bed. He cradled Wooley’s head as he maneuvered Wooley’s body down.

Helix swiftly came back to their sides. He began to pull the sleeve of Wooley’s blacks up. “Wooley?

The teenager barely registered his older brother but hummed quietly, signaling Helix to continue.

“Now, I know you’re not going to like this.”

Wooley already hated what Helix was about to say.

“I don’t want you moving while I move it so I want you to watch me do.”

Wooley whined; he did not like needles even being a medic and using them every day. Helix gripped the junction of his arm just above Wooley’s elbow. 

Wooley buried most of his face in Cody’s chest, still able to peer out at Helix. He flinched as the needle entered his arm. It made it so much worse looking at it.

Helix gently rubbed Wooley’s bicep with his free hand. He had to slowly press the plunger down, as to not overwhelm Wooley. Usually, Helix could be done within three seconds but since he had to go slow, he guessed it would take twenty seconds.

Wooley almost jerked away halfway through, feeling too much at the same time. He tried to focus on just one thing, but there were so many things happening that he couldn’t.

Cody felt the kid shake underneath him. His arms tightly momentarily, then he released the extra pressure. 

_“Just focus on me okay?”_ Cody told him in Mando’a. The reason he said it in a different language is that Wooley wasn’t very familiar with Mando’a so he had to think hard to translate it in his head then speak back in the same tongue.

 _“O-okay_.”

Boil, Waxer, and Helix smiled at Wooley’s hesitant use of Mando’a.

_“I know it hurts, Wooley, but you’ve got to stay calm. Helix is almost done.”_

Wooley jerkily nodded against Cody, starting to feel uncomfortable at the snail’s pace Helix was moving at.

“ _Udesii, you’re okay.”_

Helix pulled after what felt like a millennium, “All done, Wool’ika.”

Wooley already started to feel the effects of the drug, eyes feeling heavy. 

“Go to sleep, kiddo. Hopefully, you’ll feel better in the morning.”

  
  


Boil and Waxer observed their youngest who was still sleeping thanks to the effects of the downer Helix gave him the night before. They knew they would have to wake him up soon, seeing as they were supposed to go eat in twenty minutes, but they didn’t want to wake him when he was so peaceful.

“Wooley,” Waxer gently shook his shoulder.

Wooley’s closed eyes fluttered open at the touch. He rubbed his eyes tiredly, trying to force himself awake.

“Hey, _ad’ika,_ ” Boil greeted quietly.

“Hi, _ori’vod,_ ” Wooley responded, voice rough with sleep.

“Are you up for eating yet? Cody wants to know so we can make up an excuse for you if an Admiral asks.”

Wooley answered by slowly standing up. Waxer and Boil lead him out of the room. The rest of the Company was ready to go so they walked through the doors of the barracks. 

When they reached the mess hall Torrent was already there. 

But something off, all of Ghost could tell.

They were whispering but the youngest was silent. He looked like he had been crying earlier like he had an anxiety attack. But it looked like much more than that. Torrent looked like they were at a loss of what to do.

Wooley wondered what the hell was going on with his best friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Beta reader/Editor: AngelWars (Ao3)
> 
> Yay, I got this out in a timely manner. The next chapter will be Comet-centric. Let me know if you have any requests. And thank you for reading.
> 
> Let me know if you guys like the new teenagers, Zekk and Jake.
> 
> What do you think?


	33. Chapter 33-The Pup of the Wolfpack's Origins (Pt.1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Needing to distract an upset tennager, Tup, Wolffe tells him how Comet came to become the pup of the Wolfpack.

Comet walked into the mess alongside the other members of the Wolfpack, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. Comet almost ran into the doorway, but Arks pulled Comet back by the neck of his blacks, equally as tired. They had gotten little sleep last night; going over battle plans with their General, along with a few other brothers. 

As they entered the mess, they looked around and saw at least eight battalions scattered around. The 212th was there, with their youngest sitting among them, shocking Comet. Wooley didn’t look too hot yesterday during training.

_Well, he looks better from yesterday._

As Comet looked at the 212th, he saw them shooting weird glances at Torrent’s side of the table. Wooley was among them, looking concerned.

Comet frowned himself, looking at his boyfriend. 

Torrent was whispering rapidly, shooting glances at Tup. Comet read Tup’s body posture, which didn’t look good. His hair was in a messy bun that was about to fall out, a few strands slipping out. His eyes were a little teary, and his arms were folded on the table. 

_Damn it, he does not look good._

Comet quickly looked at the rest of Torrent, silently asking, _‘What the hell happened?’_

Rex mouthed to him, “Nightmare, and then an anxiety attack.”

Comet nodded, quietly sitting down next to Tup. He rubbed his shoulder lightly. Tup turned his head to stare at Comet sadly. Comet bit the inside of his lip.

“Baby, what’s going on?” Comet whispered, letting the name slip out to convey to Tup and the others how worried he was.

Tup shook his head, tears slipping out of his eyes. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Okay, okay,” Comet backed off on the subject, shocked at the tears Tup shed. 

Tup very rarely cries in the presence of so many brothers. Luckily, it was only the Alpha Companies around the mess that were concerned and got a glimpse of Torrent every once in a while; Ghost, Wolfpack, the 327th, Monnk’s company, and 91st.

Comet tugged Tup into an embrace, settling his chin on top of Tup’s head. Comet rocked lightly and squeezed Tup’s torso tightly. Tup clung to his waist, head buried deep in the pup of the Wolfpack’s chest.

Tup calmed down after ten minutes, tears decreasing. He stayed in Comet’s chest, not wanting to see the others. Comet let him stay curled up, protecting him from the stares from their brothers. 

Comet shot a glance over his shoulder at Torrent, seeing if they have any more explanations for what happened to his boyfriend. 

Rex and Fives were hunched on the table, looking much older than their early twenties. Kix looked exhausted, still shooting glances at Tup out of second nature. Jesse and Echo shared similar expressions like Kix; even Hardcase seemed concerned. Comet decided to ask them about it later.

“What can I do Tup?” Comet asked into the shell of his ear.

“Nothing,” Tup answered, empty and devoid of emotion, even though he was just crying ten minutes ago. Tup was ignoring the tremors in his hands. 

The mess door hissed open and suddenly an Admiral stalked into the mess hall. 

The whole mess hall went silent; the couples who were connected at the hip or just sitting close together started splitting apart from each other and putting a few inches between their bodies, some hid their faces nonchalantly to avoid eye contact, and others hid behind others. Admirals were not necessarily supposed to be in the trooper’s mess hall, but none of them wanted to risk questioning him; which would lead to being threatened with reconditioning or even decommissioning if it came to that. 

The elder troopers always warn their younger brothers to not piss off the Admirals. If they do, they could lose their brothers one way or another; either they get reconditioned or the Jedi make them mysteriously ‘disappear’ to save them. 

The Admiral glared around the room, unmistakably looking for someone in particular. He stalked to the 327th and 91st table, passing by Torrent and Ghost in the process. They let out a sigh of relief when he didn’t come directly to them. They all looked to Tup in fear as their brotherly instincts kicked in, but his face was blank, now out of Comet’s arms, messing with his food; like it was just a normal day and he didn’t just have a breakdown for the second time that day.

Kix’s sympathetic eyes stared at Tup, and Jesse brushed Kix’s knee with a hand under the table. Rex and Fives looked at a loss. But all of them had something in common.

They were terrified of how fast Tup put on a straight face, acting as nothing happened. He was a blank slate.

Fives could distinctly hear Comet mutter under his breath, “Motherfucker, what the hell is wrong with him?” Comet quickly shot a look to Tup to see if the other teenager had heard him ask the rhetorical question, but Tup didn’t glance back. Tup was still focused on the table in front of him, trying to ignore everything that had happened before the Admiral stepped into the room.

The whole mess was still silent as the Admiral, Adrian Bates, stopped right in front of Bly’s side of the table, ignoring Ponds and his company. His cold eyes landed on Jake, the youngest. Bates stared at Jake’s eyes— which were extremely different from his brothers—and fixed him a glare. Jake’s rare, frosty blue eyes made him stand out, sometimes not in a good way. The Kaminoians were always trying to find an excuse to terminate him, saying there was something wrong with his DNA codes, but Shaak Ti would always step in and stop the decommissioning.

But that doesn’t mean the Kaminoians are the only ones with a vendetta against clones; some of the Admirals were always looking for any reason to get them in trouble. 

The whole room was tense.

The 327th Alpha Company shielded their youngest, cursing Admiral Bates in every language they know in their heads. Jake shifted in his seat uncomfortably. He was scared, curling in on himself. Jake felt a hand carefully slip into his. The owner of the hand squeezed his smaller one tightly, giving him strength. He knew it was a trooper from the 91st, judging by how all his company members were in front of him to shield him. He gratefully squeezed back, leaning partially onto the trooper’s shoulder. The Admiral didn’t stop looking at him, eyes boring into Jake’s soul.

Jake’s hands started to shake in the grip of his brother. His brother’s hand moved so he could stroke the back of Jake’s hand. 

“K’oyacyi,” Jake could barely hear his brother speak, but he understood what his brother was saying in a split second.

Admiral Bates pulled his gaze away, instead, he turned to Jake’s Commander.

“General Secura is asking for you, _Commander_ ,” the older man hissed out Bly’s title.

“Why didn’t the General look for me herself?” Bly shot back, not backing down. He was pissed at the way the Admiral looked at and scared Jake.

Bates glared at the clone. “Because unlike you clones, the Generals are needed constantly. She sent me to retrieve you.”

Bly forcefully stood up from the table after checking Jake out with a single glance, then made his way out of the mess hall. The Admiral smirked and turned on his heel to follow him.

But he stopped for a second time, right next to Torrent; more specifically in front of Tup.

Tup tensed up but looked up at the Admiral nonetheless, eyes blank. 

_“Fix_ your hair before I cut it off.”

Tup mindlessly took the messy bun out—as mindlessly as a droid—and put it into a much neater one, making sure none of his hair touched his ears or neck.

The Admiral seemed to be satisfied and stalked away.

Everyone sighed in relief but vowed to possibly throw that Admiral into an air-lock for threatening not one, but _two_ of the youngest. 

Everyone seems to care... but Tup didn’t.

  
  


Later that day, Commander Wolffe was walking down the hall aimlessly. He got bored with sitting around the Wolfpack barracks, so he decided to get some time away from them. Wolffe suddenly stopped in his steps and blinked at the sight he saw in the hall.

He came across a younger trooper sitting on the cold floor on the left side of the hall, back against the wall. His head was bowed low, and there was a loud conversation going on in the barracks. Wolffe knew who the trooper was and whose barracks he ended up in front of. 

_Well, looks like Torrent is giving Tup a hard time today._

Wolffe took a seat on the right side of Tup, giving him a little bit of space. He let his cold and stubborn facade fall and slip away. He was just Tup’s older brother at that moment, not a stone-cold Commander.

“I’m guessing _that_ conversation in there is about you,” Wolffe broke the ice between him and the eighteen-year-old.

All Tup did was nod, staring at the wall.

“You’re quiet today, aren’t you? Rough day?” Wolffe asked, sincerely wanting to know.

Tup nodded again, then whispered, “It’s my anxiety.”

Wolffe nodded, recognizing that Tup’s anxiety could take him out for a day or two mentally. He also understood that Tup’s anxiety made him silent, along with his draining depression. 

“Are you thinking of some bad things right now?” Wolffe asked, needing to know if he would have to calm Tup down if he had an anxiety attack. 

Wolffe had luckily only had to deal with three brothers in his lifetime having panic attacks or anxiety attacks. During each of those three times, he barely got to help them. That meant he didn’t have much experience.

Tup moved his hand back and forth in a ‘so-so’ motion. Tup surprised Wolffe by leaning his head on the Commander’s shoulder. Wolffe didn’t push him away, he momentarily dropped his head on Tup’s head. 

They stayed that way, Tup sighing or flinching every time they heard one of their brothers yell inside the barracks. Wolffe didn’t speak, letting Tup remain in silence. Wolffe stayed silent until a thought crossed his mind.

“Comet never told you how he came to the Wolfpack, did he?”

Tup looked to the Commander with wonder in his eyes, insinuating that he wanted to know.

“Comet didn’t have a happy beginning with us,” Wolffe admitted, “Sinker, Boost, Arks, and I had just gotten finished with the Malevolence campaign about three months before Comet and others came to us. We had gotten new transfers like Ace and Blitz, but they were not nearly as young as Comet. And I gave him a hard time for it.”

  
  


* * *

_A year ago and a half..._

A young trooper, newly twelve and a half— technically seventeen, stepped off a transport. He just finished a two-week-long battle with his broth— _no, teammates,_ he corrected himself with a hiss in his mind.

He didn’t have any brothers in the 104th. He was fresh off of Kamino; he was supposed to go to a different battalion, but for some reason, he was transferred last minute. None of his batchmates were transferred with him, so he was alone. He didn’t receive an explanation; not from anyone. The only plus in the situation was that he was in one of the best battalions in the GAR.

In the first 3 hours of being on _The Dawn_ — a ship hailed by the 104th battalion—his new brothers avoided him like the plague. All of them, even the ones who were also partly new to the 104th as well. That’s why he had no brothers within the Wolfpack. He managed to even scrape up his brothers’ names by listening to their conversations.

Even after a month with the 104th, Comet’s predicament hadn’t gotten any better.

Blitz and Ace were transferred a few months before him.

Sinker and Boost were shinies too. They arrived about five months before Blitz and Ace.

Arks, the mute, had been with the 104th since the beginning.

And Wolffe…

The Commander was in the same boat as Arks.

But for some reason, they all disliked this specific young trooper. They refused to talk to him; if they did it, it would be forced. But the Commander seemed to loathe him, along with the Alpha Company. They would give him the cold shoulder or suddenly snap at him when he didn’t do anything wrong. The Wolfpack, Wolffe included, just ignored his existence to the best of their abilities. 

The new kid’s name was Comet. 

Comet collapsed on his bunk after shedding his armor. He was about to fall asleep but the others started talking, ones from the main battalion. Sinker, Boost, Ace, Blitz, Arks, and Wolffe were in the bunk room next to them, seeing that they were part of the Alpha pack. Or it was the fact that the main bunk rooms were fully packed with no room to spare.

“Does anyone else think Wolffe and the others are being a little harsh to the kid?” Someone asks no one in particular.

Comet almost flinched but managed to stay still.

“I think it’s just Wolffe being Wolffe,” one trooper responded from Comet’s left.

“No, he’s definitely being unfair. But I mean, can you blame them? He’s a kid.”

_What the hell does my age have anything to do with it? Just because I’m a kid doesn’t mean Wolffe has to be an asshole._

“Yeah, you have a point.” Someone agreed.

_Wow, you guys are supposed to be my brothers._

“Does that mean Wolffe has to be a jerk though?”

The others went silent, thinking hard. Comet had a sliver of hope pass through his heart. _Please. Someone? Anyone? Just care._

“I don’t know.” One of them finally answered. 

Comet didn’t expect them to back him up ever again after that. Even if the others had some sympathy for him, they wouldn’t show it in front of the Wolfpack; especially Wolffe.

“Wait, is the kid even asleep?”

Comet’s heart skipped a beat, forcing his breathing to slow down.

“Kid?” one of them called. 

Comet stayed quiet, wondering if they even knew his name. They never called him by his chosen name, just ‘he’ or ‘the kid’ or ‘shiny’. However, despite all the names he was called that he did not choose for himself, they never went far enough to call him by his given name.

_CT-6169._

“Kid!” They try to call him again.

“Nah, leave him alone. We don’t need to wake him up. The kid looked tired when we got off the transport. Let him sleep.”

* * *

_A month later..._

Comet put his back against the wall, sighing heavily. He watched as his teammates spar with each other, tackling brothers to the ground with ruthless strength. Within the few weeks he had been with the Wolfpack, he noticed that his brothers seemed to be rowdier than other battalions and liked to roughhouse a lot on the regular; and training was no different.

Comet jumped when a hand landed on the shoulder of his blacks. He whirled around, seeing his General.

He snapped to attention, hands clasped around his back. “Sir?”

“At ease, Comet,” Plo Koon said kindly. Even though Comet couldn’t see his face or eyes, he could tell the Jedi was smiling.

Comet frowned, not expecting to hear his name said by anyone. His ‘brothers’ in the 104th still hadn’t used his name even after eight weeks. Comet didn’t think any of his brothers knew what his name was, let alone his General, who had so many troops.

“You know and remember my name, sir?”

Plo bristled at the comment. Comet’s golden- yellow eyes widened, then he dipped his head in shame, not expecting the words to fly out of his mouth. Plo gripped his chin gently, forcing Comet to meet his eyes.

“Of course I know your name, Comet. What makes you think any different?” Plo asked, his low voice calming Comet’s nerves; which have freaked out from talking about something personal to his General.

Comet was on the edge of speaking, his mouth opening to spill everything to his General: about his brothers being jerks, feeling like he didn’t belong, and wanting to be in a different battalion. He shut his mouth though, stopping the words that would make him feel like he was whining. He quickly glanced at the Wolfpack; even if they hated him, he wasn’t going to stab them in the back.

There was something that he _could_ do that would make everyone happy.

Plo sensed the young teenager’s hesitation, and he patiently waited.

“Could we, um, talk, somewhere that isn’t here?” Comet finally got the words out, gesturing to his brothers on the other side of the room. 

The corners of Plo’s mask pulled up, the closest thing the Comet would see him smile. 

“Come,” Plo beckoned the child forward.

Comet shyly walked after him, not looking back at the battalion who were still talking loudly, encouraging their brother to pin the other down.

As Comet walked down the hall, he went over in his head what he would say to his General. He hoped the Jedi would understand. Comet got the feeling his General was an understanding man.

The older man opened the door to his room, taking hold of Comet’s shoulder. He sat the teenager on the bed and sat in a chair himself.

“What would you like to tell me, Comet?”

Comet fidgeted with his fingers, which Plo took note of it but would ask him about that later.

“I was wondering if I could…transfer to a different battalion,” only once he finished the sentence did he look up into Plo’s eyes.

Plo leaned back into the chair. He was confused about why the young trooper wanted to request a transfer. But once he got a closer look at Comet’s energy in the Force, he felt Comet’s emotions; pain, self-hatred, rejection and so much more. A few puzzle pieces clicked together just like that.

“What brings on the request?” the Kel-Dor asked calmly, leaning his elbows forward to rest onto his knees.

To both Comet’s and Plo’s astonishment, tears started to glisten in the trooper’s eyes. Comet swallowed them back down. 

“I can’t fight with the 104th. Not when they don’t trust me.”

Plo frowned, “What do you mean, ‘they don’t trust me’?”

Comet fidgeting didn’t stop, torn inside. His foot began to tap; now he was fidgeting with two different limbs. He didn’t answer.

Plo scooted forward, gathering Comet’s hands in his dark brown talons, forcing Comet to stop playing with his hands. He brushed one of his talons over the back of Comet’s knuckles. Plo stared into Comet’s Egyptian-sunset eyes, much like his older brothers’, but with such a gorgeous shade; dots of light yellow-spotted all around his dark, golden pupils. 

Comet’s eyes widened in shock at the sudden show of affection, but he kept his hands in Plo’s. 

Plo prompted the reluctant teen again, “Tell me what’s happening with your brothers.”

His lips parted, then he sighed, tilting his head to the side. “He–they–they don’t,” Comet stuttered terribly. He took a deep, calming breath before starting over. “They’re not…my brothers.” Comet looked to the floor, feeling frustrated, finding the grey floor extremely interesting. 

“Of course they are your brothers, Comet. They all love you–”

“They don’t,” Comet snapped.

Comet wanted to clap a hand to his mouth to stop the words from flooding out. 

Plo felt Comet’s pain in the honest words within the Force. Comet’s life energy licked at the air around Plo’s energy, like an octopod of monstrous tentacles. The older Jedi tilted his trooper’s chin up for the second time. He didn’t ask, he knew Comet would answer in his own time.

Comet built up enough courage to explain further to his General, “They don’t love me, General. They never talk to me, and when they do they just snap at me; like I am a disgrace to them. They hate me. I can tell.” 

Plo stiffened in shock. He could hear every single morsel of pain in the young one’s voice.

“And Wolfpack is the worse out of all of them,” Comet added as an afterthought.

Comet finished his explanation, wanting to leave it at that, but his General wasn’t about to let that last comment go. 

“What has the Wolfpack done?” Plo asked an important question.

Comet’s eyes flicked to the right. “They just all hate me, plain and simple. Sinker and Boost glare at me every time Wolffe is with them. Ace is cold to me and he snaps a lot. I know Arks doesn’t speak, but he’s still hostile to me, in his non-verbally way. And Wolffe…every time he looks at me, all I see is disgust in his eyes. Wolffe gives me the dirty look every chance he gets. So, I know he doesn’t like me, at all. The only person that is remotely nice is Blitz, but even he has his limits. I hate to admit it…but they all scare me to the point where I don’t feel safe. I always think they’ll hit me or somehow get me decommissioned if I do something wrong. I can’t beat this fear and push it down. I don’t think it’s an irrational fear, but I am scared that someone will tell me that I am just worrying too much. And I know I am not delusional about this.”

Plo frowned, feeling anger towards his oldest sons for being particularly mean to the young boy. He could fully understand if Wolffe was hesitant to get close to the new trooper, or if he was trying not to get close to him at all, but he didn’t have to be so mean and unfair to Comet or give him a hard time.

“Is there anything else the others do?” Plo asked.

Comet racked his brain for a minute, then responded, “Some of the troopers in the main battalion are like Wolffe, they snap or yell at me. They just don’t want anything to do with me. Most of the time they just ignore me. Very few are nice; for about five minutes at least.”

Po thought deeply. He had expected Comet to tell him that the older troops were giving him a hard time, considering how many shinies had been distributed onto the ship as of late after they went down in the Abregado system. Afterward, the 104th battalion would harbor harsh feelings seeing someone so young in their ranks once again. 

They were an elite battalion that went on many dangerous missions—most located in the Outer Rim—and having such inexperienced soldiers amongst the many veterans put them at unease; mostly because the veterans were readying themselves, emotionally and mentally, to lose a few shinies along the way. They didn’t want to become attached to their younger vode.

Plo didn’t foresee the others playing ‘follow the leader’ so poorly, but that may have just been their shared trauma that Plo couldn’t see. 

Plo was still puzzled about one thing. Comet’s name. Earlier the youngster had calmly asked him how he knew his name. And it looked like he hadn’t been called by his name in a while; he was shocked to hear the General utter his name that he had chosen.

“Comet,” Plo started in an easy, quiet tone, “Do they call you by your name?”

Plo prayed to the Gods that Comet would respond ‘yes’ because if he didn’t; there would be hell to pay. Plo had already gotten attached to the youngster and the rest of the Wolfpack, despite the Jedi Code, but he would have a serious talk with them if they didn't use Comet’s chosen name. The clones always preach that their chosen names are very important and they are, and if the Wolfpack ignored Comet’s name, it would be unacceptable.

So Plo’s heart broke into tiny pieces when Comet looked to the floor and gave a minuscule shake of his head. Plo released his anger and odd rage into the force and moved in to hug Comet. 

Comet froze for a second before leaning into the hug. He hadn’t expected a highly respected General to offer hugs to his soldiers, but he wasn’t about to complain or reject physical affection. It dawned on him that he hadn’t been touched in the past four weeks.

Plo pulled back. He felt a nudge in the Force. It was urging him to give Comet the information he needed to understand why his brothers were acting bitter as bad apples.

“Comet, does the word ‘Malevolence’ mean anything to you?”

Comet cocked his head to the side, like a confused puppy. His non-verbal answer was obvious.

Plo explained to Comet the events of the ‘Malevolence incident’ in the Abregado system. 

The loud pain.

The bloody carnage.

The many men—brothers and loved ones— lost to the cold reaches of space.

The raw fear.

The drowning guilt.

“Wolffe and the others don’t seem to be fond of you because you are a physical reminder to them of the brothers and loved ones they lost. And to Wolffe, the family he lost under _his_ command. You are a _living_ reminder of his failure, only to him, it seems that he failed.”

Comet was rendered completely silent once his explanation ended eyes wide. 

Plo chuckled sadly in his mind; seeing the youthful innocence was refreshing. His eyes also held a type of sadness and sympathy Plo’s seen many times before. He’s seen the replica of that look on young Tano’s face after the incident and at the knowledge of him losing his men—his sons. 

“Comet, I want you to understand three important things. The first thing is that if you wish to transfer to a different battalion, then I will grant your wish, even if I will miss your presence. I will transfer you to the 501st if being here doesn’t work out in your favor.”

Comet stiffened. “The 501st? Me?” _Woah. The 501st._

Every trooper knew about the 501st; they were almost legends on Kamino. Stories to tell in the dark to all nearby vode who were willing to lend a listening ear. All the cadets memorized the names of the brothers within the Alpha Company; it was a great honor to be in a battalion such as the 501st.

Plo smiled at his starstruck expression. “Your skills would be well-suited for the Alpha Company, Torrent, if that is what you want, of course. They are also in need of more members. But I want you to _try_ and make it work with your brothers. That is my second condition. Do I make myself clear?”

Comet nodded, knowing an ordered request when he heard one. “Yessir.”

“I also would like you to alert me every time something happens with your brothers. Anything that makes you uncomfortable or unsafe.”

With that, Comet nodded, Plo dismissed him, and Comet moved to leave the room but stopped at the doorway. He spun around on his heel, regarding his General one final time. “Sir, what was the third thing?”

“Just because your brothers went through something traumatic and horrible doesn’t mean they have the right to treat you like this. Remember that, Comet,” Plo reminds him wisely.

As Comet left his General's room, he knew that the Kel-Dor would be the person he would go to if he had any trouble. It wasn’t like he could go to his brothers.

  
  


Over the next two weeks, Comet tried his damn hardest to follow his General’s advice to get accustomed to his brothers, but it was safe to say he failed. It was not a ‘crash-and-burn’ scenario, but Comet was still scared to talk to his brothers in fear that they would get mad.

He made the mistake of speaking while in a line up with his brothers.

Wolffe was pacing slowly in front of the battalion, helmet discarded. His pale, grey cybernetic eye flicked left to right, eyeing each of them with a side glance.

“We are going to load the transports for the 501st’s reinforcements. NO mistakes. Do everything exactly as it needs to be done. Am I understood?”

“Yessir,” four of them responded, even though they weren’t technically on duty, and one of them, of course, was Comet. Comet had been on autopilot when he answered.

Wolffe immediately stopped pacing. Comet’s heartbeat quickened in its tread. 

_Shit._

Wolffe turned his cold, piercing gaze to Comet, who automatically knew he did _something_ wrong. Or, nothing at all. Some of the others glared at the floor, tears blurring their vision, while others bit their lips. Comet’s tone of voice reminded them of the young, giddy troopers they lost all those years ago.

Wolffe’s stare was full of anger and annoyance. Faces flash in front of the Commander’s eyes, but he wouldn’t be able to find those exact, unique faces ever again. Comet’s hand shook and twitched behind his back, a habit of his when he felt uncomfortable. 

The Commander glared at him for a few beats longer, then got into Comet’s space, still glaring daggers at him.

“Giddiness will not be tolerated. Don’t make me punish you for stupid mistakes like that. Do you understand me, trooper?” He didn’t yell, but the angered undertone of his voice made it seem otherwise.

Afraid to speak and say the wrong thing, Comet swallowed hard but nodded all the same. 

Wolffe’s hand raised to gesture to Blitz to get moving. Comet flinched when Wolffe’s hand got close to him, thinking he was going to hit him. Comet’s heartbeat spiked so fast that he felt a tad lightheaded. Wolffe faltered a little bit, wondering why the kid flinched, but he recovered by rolling his two different colored eyes. 

Wolffe continued with his instructions, still shooting hypercritical glares at Comet out of the corner of his eyes.

After Comet was dismissed from his disheartening duties, he headed down the familiar path to his General’s room on the ship. Comet faltered when he raised his hand to tap in the access code on the small silver keypad, but he pushed through his hesitation. 

His General was sitting on the floor with his legs crossed; deep in meditation. Plo’s eyes flew open from his meditation at the sound of the door opening.

“Hello Comet,” Plo greeted softly, slightly dreading the conversation. He knew the only reason Comet would go to him is that his brothers did something to upset him. Or it was a personal matter unrelated to his brothers.

“Hi,” Comet hugged himself, leaning on the wall.

Plo read his body posture and knew that he was, in fact, not going to enjoy this conversation. Plo stayed on the ground. “What was it this time?” 

Once again, Comet fidgeted nervously. Plo smiled fondly at the action, but something nagged him in the back of his head that it wasn’t normal.

“Wolffe just threatened to punish me,” Comet said plainly, not looking at his General.

The Kel-Dor uncharacteristically groaned, making Comet chuckle half-heartedly.

“What did you do?”

“I acknowledged an order when we weren’t on the clock. It pissed him off and the others just looked completely depressed,” Comet shrugged. 

Plo sighed, wanting to smack his eldest son on the head, just for good measure. But he knew he could never do that. “Would you like for me to talk to him?”

Comet’s facial expression became terrified. “Don’t. Please. He’ll think I’m whining like an annoying little kid-”

Plo shushed him lightly seeing him get worked up, and he moved to stand in front of him. “You are a child, Comet. What Wolffe is doing is hurting you. This isn’t whining. You are a child asking for help with his older brother. It’s hard because your older brother is also your Commanding Officer, but I can help you if you want me to.”

Comet stayed silent, feeling his childish need for comfort hitting him over and over again. He chewed on the inside of his cheek, looking up through his lashes with unintentional puppy eyes. 

Plo felt his adoration in the Force for the child standing in front of him. He hugged the boy, holding him close to his chest. The Jedi felt his trooper nuzzle closer, causing him to smile. It had been a while since he hugged one of his troopers, particularly a younger teenager. The others didn’t want physical affection like this after the incident in the Abregado system.

“Go to bed, little one. Get some rest,” Plo sent him to bed after releasing him.

After Plo allowed him to leave, he did something Comet had asked him not to do. 

Five minutes later, Plo’s Commander walked through the door. He folded his hand behind his back, back straight. “You wanted to see me, sir?”

Plo sighed, giving him a slightly annoyed look, “Drop the sir, Wolffe. You know me better than that.”

Wolffe didn’t slip out of his stance. “What is this about?”

“I think you know what, Wolffe.”

Wolffe tipped his head back, staring at the ceiling. _Damn it._

Plo took a step closer, but Wolffe stepped back. Plo stayed where he was. 

“Give him a chance, Wolffe. He’s a good soldier, but you are putting him down. You are supposed to be his older brother. If that’s too hard for you, the least you could do is be his Commander.”

Plo tested their tense boundaries, moving to put a hand on the Commander’s shoulder. Wolffe backed away again, not looking at his General.

Plo didn’t try to move again after that. He dismissed Wolffe, leaving himself in silence. He had a feeling his son wouldn’t listen to him; he hadn’t listened to him ever since the Malevolence. Plo was aware they all had some work to do. 

  
  


“Are you serious,” Comet yelped as his shoulder was almost ripped out of the socket. Ace let his arm go, after holding it in place for a few seconds. 

“I don’t know what you want me to say.” Ace rolled his eyes, both of them standing up from the grey sparring mats.

“How about _don’t_ break my shoulder next time,” Comet growled.

“Don’t give me lip, kid,” Ace growled.

The others around stood back to watch the show, chuckling amongst themselves. It was rare for someone to back-talk Ace; it took guts.

“Seriously? You’re the one playing dirty!” Comet yelled.

The rest of the 104th and the Wolfpack watched the altercation; some enjoying it, and others apprehensive. Arks watched with narrowed golden eyes. Sinker and Boost whisper to each other on his left. Blitz was on the opposite side, shaking his head, most likely aimed at Ace, his _riduur._

Wolffe seemed a little pissed but mostly taken back. Over the two months, he had known the kid to be somewhat quiet and not-outspoken. This proved to him that Comet wasn’t as quiet as he thought. He would defend himself if need be.

Arks startled Wolffe by smacking him on the shoulder. Wolffe gave him a side glance. Wolffe shrugged. His body language clearly says, ‘What is it?’

Ark glared at him, not amused. He pushed Wolffe’s shoulder, harder this time, making him stumble. Wolffe stabilized himself quickly and rolled his eyes.

“Alright, break it up you two.” he gripped Ace’s shoulder, throwing him back away from Comet. Comet glared at Ace over Wolffe’s right shoulder, showing his distaste for his brother’s action.

“What the kriff is going on?” Wolffe asked, looking annoyed.

“As I said, the damn brat couldn’t take the heat,” Ace shrugged, not seeing the point of this conversation. 

“You almost broke my arm! You expect me to just let you hurt me?!” Comet voiced, becoming angrier. 

Wolffe started walking away to defuse the situation; he wasn’t in the mood to deal with a whining teenager.

“Heh. Well, I know for damn sure your Commander trained you to not hurt your brothers–oh wait, he didn’t.” Comet made a snippy comment more directed towards Wolffe as an insult than anything else.

Wolffe froze in his steps. The whispering amongst the 104th didn’t stop, it got louder. Sinker and Boost looked ready to jump in and defend Wolffe but they held their tongues. 

Wolffe turned on his heel to face the youngest trooper. “You better watch your mouth,” he warned Comet, golden eyes stern.

Comet’s hands shook by his side. The way he had been treated for months had blurred his mind. It dashed right past his very eyes, like a holo-film on replay. He was done with his brother’s crap.

“No.”

Everyone fell silent, planning Comet’s funeral in their heads after he growled out the single word because he was being outright defiant to Wolffe; the hardass, Wolfpack Commander. Blitz audibly gasped, while Arks sighed, closing his eyes. The rest of the battalion was concerned for the shiny. The other shinies and many of the older brothers knew from day one not to mess with Wolffe. Sadly, Comet just broke the ‘Chain of Command’.

“He’s going to get it,” Boost whispered to Sinker who nodded in agreement.

Wolffe chuckled darkly, “You little shit.”

He leaned forward in front of the teenager, hands falling to his knees. He was at eye level with Comet now, and he grinned easily. Comet stiffened, knowing what a false sense of security felt like.

“You’ve got some spunk, kid. I’ll give ya that. And one _major_ attitude problem.”

Comet didn’t back down and neither did Wolffe.

“And you’ve got a lot of guts for talking to me like that, especially,” Wolffe’s grin fell slightly, “ to your _Commander.”_

Comet’s heart halted to a stop and plummeted to his stomach. He had ice in his veins. He was going to be in a lot of trouble for talking back to his Commander, let alone his older brother.

_I just snapped at Wolffe. I am in so much fucking trouble._

“Wolffe–” Blitz started, but Wolffe growled at him to stop. Blitz held up his hands in surrender, crossing his arms once against his chest in unease, shifting closer to Ace’s side.

Wolffe, with lightning-fast reflexes, gripped the front collar of Comet’s black, dragging him back to the middle of the grey mats. Comet tried to break Wolffe’s vice grip to no avail. He desperately dug his feet into the ground, but nothing was stopping Wolffe. Comet even looked to his bystanding brothers for help, for anything, but not a single soul moved to help him out.

Wolffe was going to make him spar. This was his punishment for talking back to Wolffe, and it wasn’t going to be fun for the teenager.

Wolffe threw him into the middle, circling him lightly. 

He yelled to Comet, “Since you have enough guts to talk back to me, you _obviously_ have what it takes to go against me.”

_The fuck I do! He’s going to demolish me!_

Wolffe was the Commander. His skill set was much higher than Comet’s own; having been trained by Alpha-17 himself for the ARC training program in the beginning years of the war. Wolffe could undoubtedly break bones in the blink of an eye.

Comet quickly raised his defensives, swiftly deciding it's better to at least go down with a fight than getting slammed onto the mats like a coward.

Comet and Wolffe circled each other. As soon as they started, Wolffe kicked him in the leg. Comet’s knee buckled, hitting the floor. Comet quickly blocked a blow that would’ve hit his chest. He sprung back up, landing a roundhouse kick in the center of Wolffe’s broad chest.

Comet didn’t have an exact strategy. He was just going to use his anger towards Wolffe to fuel his energy and determination to keep fighting. If that ends up being successful, then maybe he can win. The odds are against him though. They both landed punches and kicks at each other. Comet was surprised he had held against Wolffe this long. but he didn’t know how long that ‘luck’ would last.

“I can’t watch this,” Blitz whined, hiding his eyes in Ace’s shoulder. 

Arks started repetitively hitting the back of his head on the wall.

“This is entertaining,” Ace grinned, resulting in Blitz jabbing him in the ribs. 

“Wolffe is going to break his neck.” Blitz glared at him.

“And who’s fault is that?”

“Yours,” Blitz mumbled.

Comet yelped as his arm was once again twisted into a painful position. He bit his lip in pain, trying to get out of the tight hold.

“Come on kid,” a few others encouraged him.

Comet pulled again, but it was too painful.

“Kid,” Wolffe growled in a warning tone, “I'm going to break your _karking_ arm if you don’t tap out.”

Comet didn’t listen. _Well, stubbornness calls for consequences, and plenty more warnings._ Comet felt a little pop in his shoulder like the bone just slipped out a slight bit, and he whimpered a little, but still didn’t back down. Wolffe gave it another tug, this time pulling it further, making Comet squeak wetly.

The sound pulls at the heartstrings of many of the viewers watching. “Tap out!” Wolffe ordered with a growl. He heard the squeak and ignored the worry flooding his chest, violently pushing it down.

Comet groaned in pain, hitting his hand twice on Wolffe’s arm with his other hand, dropping to his knees as he was released. 

His shoulder burned. It ached something fierce.

“Don’t ever talk back to me again,” Wolffe left it at that, striking fear in the young clone.

  
  


Blitz and Arks shared a sympathetic look as they gazed over at the teenager laying on one of the couches. They were sharing a couch in the rec room. The rest of the battalion was off doing whatever, with a few to spare in the rec room with them, and Wolffe was in an officer meeting, having left an hour ago. 

Comet was lying on his back, eyes closed. He was considering going back to Plo and asking for a transfer again, and this time he would be 100% sure he wants to be transferred. He was most definitely not pouting. He was annoyed and frustrated at his brothers. All of them seemed to gang up on him all the time.

Blitz felt bad for how Wolffe handled him for back talking; he had some sympathy for the kid. Arks didn’t exactly pick any sides, but he was leaning towards Comet’s side, knowing Wolffe could’ve handled the situation differently.

Comet’s eyes fluttered open slowly and tiredly. He pulled himself up from his lying position, wincing in pain.

Blitz noticed immediately. “Are you okay?”

Comet’s head snapped up to stare at Blitz in confusion. Blitz felt his heart being crushed at the distrust in Comet’s eyes.

“Y-yeah. My shoulder’s just a little sore.” Comet answered hesitantly.

Arks took that as his cue to get up and quickly walk over to Comet. Comet watched him the whole way, not trusting his brothers. Arks made sure his hands were in Comet’s line of sight. “Which shoulder is it?” Blitz asked curiously. He approaches the younger clone a lot slower than his compatriot, Arks, letting him help Comet first before he does.

“Left,” Comet mumbled, clenching his eyes shut. Arks gingerly pressed on Comet’s joint.

Arks frowned when he pressed on the muscle that ran up from Comet’s neck to his shoulder. It was very tight and tender, making Comet flinch away.

Arks took his hands off his shoulder. 

_“When did this happen?_ ” The medic signed.

Comet just blinked at him, turning to Blitz for some verbal assistance. Blitz smiled gently, “He asked when you hurt your shoulder.”

Comet looked down, then back up at Blitz sheepishly. 

Blitz gave him a blank stare. “I know I’m not going to like this, but tell us.”

“Wolffe did it; during sparring,” Comet answered.

Blitz grumbled under his breath, “I’m gonna kill him. I'm gonna do it, I swear.”

Arks continued to dig his thumbs into Comet’s shoulder, hushing him when Comet would shift in pain. Comet slowly relaxed against Arks, almost forgetting his mistrust for his brothers. 

_“It looks like it was minorly dislocated, but somehow Wolffe popped it back in. I don’t know how the hell it happened but it’s just a pulled muscle.”_ Blitz relaid Arks’ explanation to the teenager, who was equally shocked as Arks was. 

Soon, once Arks’ hands dropped away from Comet, the younger clone unconsciously shifted away from them. Blitz and Arks guiltily met eyes, feeling horrible of how they've been treating Comet the past two or so months. 

They looked around at the other six battalion members in the room, seeing the same look.

“Kid,” Blitz treaded carefully, “could we talk about something with you?”

Comet frowned as the others gathered around, some on the floor and others on the other couches. “Sure, knock yourself out.”

“Look, we are very aware of how we’ve treated you,” one clone, who Comet knew as Code, spoke from his seat on the ground. 

Comet kept his body posture guarded, not letting his brothers read him. He would stay guarded until they either gave him an explanation or they apologized.

“It wasn’t fair to you. You’re just a kid and you didn’t ask for it,” Ty admitted quietly to him.

“But they were grieving. They still are,” Blitz turned Comet towards him, “Everyone in this room, not including me, survived the Malevolence.” 

Pip scooted forward, face solemn. “You’re a kid. A shiney. We had so many kids on that ship, and they all died. They were killed. We all mutually agreed to never get close to someone as young as you again. We wouldn’t be able to bear the pain to lose more of our _vod’ika_.”

“So we pushed you away, to keep us safe; from you,” Code jumped in again.

“How would that protect you from me?” Comet asked softly.

“We’re protective of those we consider family. If we were to accept you like family, we would love you and want to protect you from anything,” Poke answered for Code. “But that’s the problem, we would _love_ you. We would love you too much that it would destroy us if you died. You’re just a kid; we have already loved teenagers and we lost them all .”

Comet held back the urge to hug every one of them. His hands twitched at his sides. 

“Why are you telling me this? Why now, after months of you hating me?” Comet asked.

Arks moved to sign, but his hand fell after he remembered the youngest clone couldn’t understand him. Blitz placed a hesitant hand on Comet’s shoulder, who flinched slightly at the sudden touch. 

“We didn’t mean to act like we hate you. The reason we're talking to you about this now is that Wolffe isn’t here. Wolffe...is always the most hateful of the new shinies, but not because of the reason you think. It’s mostly–”

“His own self-hatred,” Comet jumped in, “because I remind him of all the men he lost under his command...all the brothers he lost. He was responsible for them and they died, so he blames himself. It’s all because he couldn’t save them.”

The other clones all fell silent, not expecting Comet to know about that godforsaken mission. 

“Yeah,” Blitz whispered.

Blitz continued, “We grieve with him, don’t get us wrong. But when we’re with him, we see how he is struggling to hold it together, and then we end up following along with his actions. We become hateful towards you as well, just following in Wolffe’s lead. We are so sorry, we had no right to treat you like that.”

Comet’s hand shook, feeling all these emotions bubble in his chest. He tried to speak, but no words came out from his vocal cords. Strong arms wrapped around him. His body tightened up like coiled springs.

“We’re sorry...Comet.” 

Comet choked on air at the sound of his name uttered by them for the first time. He slowly brought his arms up to move closer to the brother holding him. He let go of all his doubts and tightly hugged his brother back. Someone nuzzled his hair, their breath tickling his scalp. He felt more hands on his body, all gentle touches. 

“Wolffe will come around, Comet. He just has to give you a chance,” Blitz reassured him.

Comet’s eyebrows furrowed slightly. He bit his bottom lip, silently thinking. The tense pressure in the room became heavier and heavier, nearly suffocating every member patiently waiting for the youngest to respond. Comet finally looked back up at Blitz again.

“....okay.” He nodded, then burrowed back into Blitz’s chest, nuzzling closer. Blitz’s heart melted.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...I did not intend for this chapter to be 22 pages but... I love y'all so here you go! We got some more action with one of the new teenagers in the story, Jake, and I hope you guys like him!
> 
> Beta reader/Editor-AngelWars (Ao3)
> 
> Thank so you guys so much for reading.
> 
> What do you think? Requests?


	34. Chapter 34-The Pup of the Wolfpack's Origins (Pt. 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Part two of the previous chapter.

“Wolffe, come on. Why are you in such a sour mood?” Ponds’ fingers jabbed into Wolffe’s side. 

Wolffe slapped his hand away, growling under his breath at his batchmate. He had just finished his meeting with the Generals, tagging along with his other batchmates after.

“None of your damn business.”

Rex laughed as Wolffe slapped Bly’s hand as well. “Seriously Wolffe, what is it?” Rex asked.

“Nothing,” Wolffe mumbled low in his throat. a warning tone within his voice. 

“So how’s that new transfer doing. Wolffe, he’s been with you for almost three months, right? He’s also young, isn’t he?” Cody asked, after thinking about his teenager in Ghost, Wooley. 

“The little shit has an attitude for sure,” Wolffe grumbled, not wanting to talk about the new kid.

“Ha! That’s why I’m not going to have any kids in my battalion unless absolutely necessary,” Rex laughed.

“Careful Rex, you might change your tune sooner or later,” Ponds warned. 

Rex rolled his eyes. “Mhm, sure Ponds. Whatever will help you sleep at night. If I ever let or get attached to a teenager in Torrent, let alone the 501st, you have permission to say ‘I told you so’. But it’s not going to happen.”

“I’m serious, Rex’ika. I thought the same thing you did, but sooner or later, Zeke came to us and we got attached instantly; even if he’s a little shit. He definitely has an attitude, but it’s more playful than anything,” Ponds admitted.

Bly chuckled, “It’s the complete opposite for us and Jake. He’s quiet until you get to know him. He’s just shy; always has been and will probably stay that way.”

Ponds nudged Bly’s shoulder. “Is he doing okay? I heard some of the Admirals were giving him a hard time today.”

Bly grumbled and growled under his breath, “He always gets crap from the Admirals. They tried to get him reconditioned yesterday. He froze and almost went with them, but luckily I just happened to be walking past and stumbled into the conversation. There are only a few Admirals that aren’t mean to him.”

Wolffe growled under his breath, “That’s just fucked up. I may not like kids, but that’s not right.”

“Bottom line is that I have no need for a kid that gives me sass, thank you,” Rex said finally, feeling like he wanted to punch an Admiral the next time he crossed paths with one. 

Cody smirked. “Then what the hell does Fives do?”

Rex reached over the table and smacked Cody on the head. “Fives is the only exception because he’s my _cyare_. That’s the only reason. And he’s nineteen, not technically a teenager-”

“You say that now, but once you get a kid, you’re going to think he’s a baby until he’s twenty-five.”

“Fuck you, Cody.”

“Whatever. We should get going, it’s late,” Bly announced, checking the time. They all parted ways in the hallway, heading back to their barracks before an Admiral yells at them for standing around.

  
  


“Okay, Wolffe, I am fucking done with your bullshit,” Comet called after Wolffe. 

Wolffe was about to leave the room after saying something condescending to Comet but stopped when Comet called after him.

“My bullshit. Really?” Wolffe asked, take a few steps toward Comet.

The younger one didn’t falter. “Yes, your shit,” Comet growled, “You act as if you hate me but you really just hate yourself and you’re taking it out on me when I did _nothing_ wrong!”

Wolffe glared at him while the others looked around apprehensively. Wolffe’s rage was unmatched to any of them, and they didn’t believe they could stop him if he started to do something that could hurt Comet; whether it is his words or actions.

“I didn’t try to make your life miserable! I didn’t try to get close to you because I respected you enough not to. But then you became an asshole towards me for no kriffing reason!” Comet screamed.

“Kid just shut the hell up,” Wolffe gritted warningly, “You don’t know anything about us. About me!” He yelled, making Comet want to curl in on himself in fear, but he refrained from doing so. 

“I know that you have been a complete, utter asshole with a cold heart! No one else but you, and everyone in the battalion, has been mean to me!”

Wolffe continued to glare at him, growling anomalistically in his throat.

“I get. You hate me, Wolffe. And I’m okay with that! But the least you could do as a good Commander is try not to get me killed every damn second! I don’t understand why you are such an ass! I didn’t ask you to get attached to me or not, you had no reason to get attached because I didn’t want to get attached to _you_ ,” Comet inhales before relaxing his stressed face, “Instead of treating me like a human, you treated me like dirt, and I really don’t appreciate it,” He finished somewhat calmly, not fuming as bad as before.

“Just shut the fuck up kid. You don’t know what you’re talking about,” Wolffe dismissed the subject.

“No! Look, I am sorry that you lost your brothers! I really am!” Comet yelled, getting dangerously, and quite stupidly closer to Wolffe. “But don’t pull that lever and dump that hate on me! I’m new, and I know that. I’m a shiny, right? And I remind you of them, right? But that doesn’t give you the kriffing right to be mean, and a cold, heartless jerk, and HATE me!” Comet yelled at the top of his lungs.

Wolffe froze.  
“So tell me, _Commander._ What did I ever do to you?!” Comet glared at him with hot knives.

No one spoke, they all stared at the ground, feeling Comet’s honest words bury themselves deep within their souls. Wolffe was staring dumbstruck at the youngster. Comet was right, and they knew it. Wolffe needed to change his ways; not just towards Comet, but to the others as well. Wolffe had indeed become a heartless man toward his troopers, his General, and now, even his own batchmates, and it shows as black and white.

Wolffe is pissed. Not his normal sour self. He looked like he wanted to kill something. Arks felt his heart stop and drop. He had known Wolffe the longest and he knew how to read his facial expressions, or rather anyone's facial expressions. Wolffe was about to tear Comet apart.

Wolffe marched forward, forcing Comet to backpedal back towards the wall.

“Wolffe-” 

“Stop it-”

“Don’t-”

Wolffe ignored the pleas of his brothers. He grabbed the scruff of Comet’s neck and walked Comet back into the solid wall, slamming the teenager’s shoulders and back onto the cold metal. Comet tried to work his way out of Wolffe’s grip but stopped when Wolffe growled in warning.

Everyone scrambled out of their seats. Blitz jumped up from his seat, Arks following closely behind. Blitz was about to make his way towards the two but Ace quickly pulled his arms behind him in alarm. Ace pulled Blitz down to make him sit on his lap so he could hold him better. Sinker did the same with Arks, but sat him on the couch, seeing as Arks wasn’t fond of physical affection. Arks glared at him. Sinker glared back, silently commanding him to stay down.

“What are you doing?” Blitz hissed, struggling in Ace’s arms.

“Stop Blitz, stop. I won’t let Wolffe hurt him. But you need to sit down and stay calm or Wolffe will hurt him because you pissed him off more. I promise I won’t let him hurt Comet, _cyar’ika_.”

Comet whimpered as his body was literally put between a rock and a hard place. He was frozen in place. His chest was heaving up and down in fear. A vice-like grip wrapped around his lungs like a snake was constricting him. His wide eyes stared into Wolffe’s cold ones; one, his normal hazel gold, the other is empty and grey.

“You don’t know shit about me, shiny,” Wolffe’s voice was eerily calm, not screaming like before. “You’ve just gotten here; you don’t know how this works. You don’t know what it’s like to lose your brothers. And when you lose a brother, you won’t be so cocky and talkative then, will ya? No. No, you won’t be.”

Wolffe pulled the teenager away from the wall and slammed Comet backward into it again. “I’ve been in this shitty game longer than you. You don’t get to tell me how to feel about you. Sooner or later, you’re going to lose a brother that you are close with, bonded with, felt that you could put all your trust in, someone you love more than just a friend, and then you’ll understand what I exactly go through. Until you do, Comet, remain silent. Do I make myself clear?”

The teenager was shaking violently. Tremors rocked his body, sending vibrations through his body to Wolffe’s hands. His eyes squeezed shut, tears lining his black eyelashes. He was downright terrified of his Commander. 

_Why did I think I could be this confident? Stars, why?_

He whimpered again. The other clones felt their hearts twist unevenly. Even if they didn’t love Comet completely, they still felt a twinge of pain when their baby brothers were scared of one of their own. When a clone was afraid of another clone, there was a big issue. Comet was a teenager, which was classified to them as practically a baby, and they were supposed to protect him, no matter how they felt.

“Wolffe, cut it out!” one of the clones yelled to him, snapping Wolffe out of his trance.

Wolffe’s eyes cleared, widening some. He suddenly dropped his hands from Comet’s shoulders. Comet automatically slid down to the ground, cowering away from his Commander and _ori’vod_ , and curled in on himself. Wolffe stepped away, hands semi-raised.

Everyone glared at him. 

“Great going, Wolffe. An absolutely astonishing job,” Ace deadpanned sarcastically, finally releasing Blitz from his arms. The others whispered to each other, some cursing out Wolffe’s name under their breaths. Wolffe’s eyes were still glued to the trembling kid on the floor.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” Comet barely managed to get the words out.

Dead silence deafened the room. The whispering stopped; it was so quiet you could hear a pin drop clearly within the barracks.

_The poor thing, he’s terrified,_ Arks noted to himself.

“I didn't-I didn't mean to intrude on your grieving, and I didn't mean t-to upset you. I ju-just...I-I w-wanted you to stop h-hating me!" Comet continued, hot tears burning in his eyes. He swiped the back of his hand over his eyes to banish the tears, but they kept coming.

Wolffe could feel Arks’ glare burning into the back of his skull. Arks knew a thing or two about physical and emotional abuse; and Wolffe just showed a prime example of them. 

He didn’t pay another glance to his brothers and stalked out of the room.

Comet was still terrified, shaking in his ball. A few of the clones that were closer to him tried to touch him but he would move further away from them.

“Should we go to him?” Blitz asked Arks hesitantly, who nodded firmly, breaking out of Sinker’s grasp. 

Blitz, Arks, and Ace all slowly and quietly crossed the room to where the teenager was, huddled in a corner close to the door. Arks pushed on Blitz lightly, signaling for him to stay back for a moment.

Arks slowly crouched to the floor, keeping his hands in front of him. He shifted so he was sitting a few inches away from Comet. Arks’ hands were steady as he reached for Comet’s right hand, and he praised Comet in his head when he let Arks grab his shaking limb. 

Arks drew circles with his thumb on the inside of Comet’s wrist, locking his eyes on the teenager, sighing lightly.

“Why does he hate me so much?” Comet brokenly asked the medic. He lifted his head from his knees, teary eyes locking with Arks’. 

Arks couldn’t answer. The first reason was that he doesn’t talk, and the other reason was he was asking himself the same question. Comet wasn’t a bad kid; he was a kind and open person. He didn’t purposely try to piss Wolffe off, but the Commander was so close-minded he couldn’t see that.

Blitz’s gaze fell to the door, glaring holes into the metal. He was pissed at Wolffe. It was one thing to hold a grudge against the kid, but it was another thing to physically pin him to the wall and scare him.

“I’m sorry,” Comet whimpered again.

Blitz shook his head, vowing to yell at Wolffe later, and sat down next to Arks. “No, Comet. _We’re_ sorry.”

Comet frowned, tears still falling from his eyes. He was confused as to why Blitz was apologizing. Even through the tears, he cocked his head to the side.

Blitz cracked a small smile. “We should've stopped Wolffe from the beginning; especially just now. You don’t deserve that kind of treatment.”

Comet dropped his head into his knees with a noise of despair. 

Arks carefully pulled the teenager away from the wall and closer to him and Blitz. Arks let Comet latch onto him. Blitz ran his fingers through Comet’s dark hair to assist in calming him down.

Blitz saw his lover out of the corner of his eyes heading for the door. “Ace, don’t. Wolffe is already pissed enough as it is. If you go talk to him right now, he would start yelling at you. Then I’m really going to have to punch him.” 

Ace grumbled under his breath but backed away from the door, retreating to the couch.

Comet was still curled into a ball, but his shaking died down. He peeked out from his legs, his broken puppy eyes meeting Blitz’s. Blitz smiled sympathetically, grabbed his free hand, and gave it a light squeeze. Comet squeezed back, eyes not drifting from either Arks or Blitz.

“Come on, you can sleep with us tonight,” Blitz decided for Comet. He wanted Comet to sleep with the Wolfpack incase Wolffe came back looking for another fight.

Comet was pulled to his feet by Arks, who tucked the teenager under his arm to hold him close. 

Comet found himself lying on Blitz’s bed, turned on his side. Blitz was crouched in front of him on the floor. He continued to play with Comet’s soft hair, fingers stroking his scalp in comforting upbeats and lows. Blitz spoke to Ace in a hushed tone even though he knew Comet wasn’t paying attention.

“Comet,” the teenager’s eyes flicked to Boost, “try to sleep, kid. We’ll be right here.”

Comet smiled the smallest bit at the promise made by his older brother. His eyes slipped closed, tear streaks still visible. He was dragged into sleep, feeling safe in the presence of Blitz and the others.

Blitz’s hand never stilled in Comet’s dark locks. Everyone’s eyes were glued onto the sleeping teenager, feeling a range of emotions course through their bodies. 

Sinker pulled his gaze away, eyes falling to the floor. Tears blurred his vision, and one slipped over his waterline. He missed his brothers so much. He missed them every day; every morning he could feel the lack of his brothers in the barracks. And the first time he saw Comet and learned his age, he felt a knife stab him in the heart from both grief and sadness.

Comet was a _baby_ compared to them. 

Wolffe was twenty-two, the oldest of the 104th. Arks was twenty-one, soon to be twenty-two. Sinker and Boost were newly twenty, with Ace and Blitz following close behind.

Comet was _seventeen_ ; the age difference between him and Wolffe is five years. Comet was too young for this, it’s inhuman. 

Boost glanced over at Sinker, but what he found was not what he was expecting. Sinker was silently crying, glaring a hole into the ground. Boost shifted into his batchmate’s line of sight. Sinker closed his eyes so he didn’t have to see the pity in his brother’s eyes. 

Boost gave a half-smile as Sinker closed his eyes, knowing he would’ve done the same. He gently cradled Sinker’s face, the pad of his thumb stroking Sinker’s cheekbone. Sinker’s eyes remain closed, hiding his golden eyes from view.

“Hey,” Boost whispered very quietly, Sinker barely able to hear him, trying to get him to open his eyes. Sinker shook his head, silently telling Boost he didn’t want to open his eyes.

“Open your eyes, Sink. Please talk to me, _vod’ika_ ,” Boost asked him. 

Sinker’s eyes reluctantly fluttered open, golden-brown eyes full of tears. Boost pulled him into a hug, allowing Sinker to cling to his chest. 

“I miss them,” Sinker whispered into his chest.

Boost felt his heart clench at the thought of all the brothers they lost on that ship.

“I know _vod’ika_ , I know. But now we can’t grieve the way we have been before. We can’t be mean to Comet anymore, it’s not fair to him. You can still grieve their deaths, but stay kind to everyone else.”

“And I miss them too, _vod’ika_ ,” Boost added when Sinker didn’t say anything else, squeezing Sinker closer.

  
  


Plo wasn’t shocked when he heard his door slide open. He had felt a strange amount of emotions hit him at the same time from a certain battalion that he was very close to thirty minutes ago during his meditation. He refrained from going to the barracks and assess the situation himself, knowing his soldiers could handle themselves.

“Hello, Wolffe,” he greeted.

The Commander hesitated in the doorway. He wasn’t as calm and severe as usual. He folded in on himself and his eyes were haunted.

“I...” Wolffe started but didn’t extend his sentence.

Plo frowned, not expecting the brash Commander to be hesitant. “What is it?” He needed to hear it from Wolffe; he could easily look into the Force and read Wolffe’s emotions, but he felt that was imposing on his son’s privacy.

Wolffe bit his lip so hard it almost started to bleed. Did he really want to get all fluffy and touchy-feely with his General? The man who has done the best he can for them, considering the GAR’s rules for the clones, but Wolffe kept him at arm's length. At the same time, why won’t he tell his general?

Plo took an experimental step towards Wolffe. The younger man all but stayed still where he stood. He jumped back a few steps. Plo froze in his steps. He decided to not push it right now, and he retreated back.

“Wolffe,” Plo said in a warning tone for him to start talking or he was going to have to use the Force and read him.

“I, um. I slammed Comet...against the wall,” Wolffe’s sentences were choppy, his eyes were kind of distant. 

“What?” Plo almost shouted. The Wolfpack roughhoused a lot, but just by the tone of Wolffe’s voice, it wasn’t the playful kind of rough house, it was intentional. “What caused you to do that?”

“We-we started arguing. We both said some things that were hurtful. I don’t know how it happened but I ended up p-pinning Comet against the wall. He started shaking...but I didn’t stop. The others told me to stop and I didn't. Then I let go of him. He dropped to the floor and he backed away from me and started to cry. I left the room after that,” Wolffe explained in an oddly soft tone that wasn’t his normal voice. 

“What were you arguing about?” Plo asked in a firm voice, needing to fully understand the situation. 

Wolffe shook his head. 

The Jedi took a threatening step. “Wolffe, do not make me order you to tell me. I don’t want to, but you know I will.”

Wolffe gulped, slightly fearing his General’s threat. “He-I…”

“Wolffe,” Plo’s voice was much softer now, “calm. Calm down. You need to tell me so I can better understand.”

Wolffe understood he needed to answer, so he nodded, taking a shaky breath. “He said ‘I’m done with your bullshit’, then I started to yell back. He said he didn’t understand why I hated him because he did nothing wrong and that I hated myself, so I took it out on him.”

“Go on,” Plo prompted, not moving any closer.

“He told me he purposely didn’t get close to the others, more specifically me, because he respected the fact that I was still grieving. I-I told him that he didn’t know shit about me. He said he didn’t want to get attached to me and he understood that I didn't want to get attached to him, but he said he still deserved to be treated like a human being and that I treat him like shit…”

Plo nodded along, “And is he right? Doesn’t he have the right for you to be somewhat nice to him? As he said, he didn’t get attached to you because he _respected_ you, Wolffe. Right now, you’re losing his respect, and you just destroyed his trust for you as his Commander.”

Wolffe bit his lip again, feeling ashamed and out of his body. He didn’t want to be mean or evil; he didn’t want to be like Fox, who was particularly mean to a certain blonde member of his squadmates.

Plo sensed Wolffe’s unease. “Wolffe, is he right?” the Jedi asked softly again, genuinely wanting Wolffe to give him an answer.

“He’s right,” Wolffe whispered, voice breaking, “he was also sorry that I lost everyone on that ship, and that he reminds me of who I lost. But he doesn’t deserve the way I treat him. He’s right.”

Wolffe’s hands started shaking, tremors rocked his body. The sound of tremors wracking against plastorid alloy armor ripples throughout the room. Wolffe was breaking inside. The Commander was self-destructing from the inside out.

Plo noted his Commander becoming overwhelmed. “Wolffe, calm down.”

Wolffe slowly shook his head, hand coming up to tightly cover his mouth.

“Wolffe, take it easy. You will figure everything out with Comet.”

The dark-haired Commander didn’t respond, tears were his only response. Wolffe glanced up at his General, eyes clouded with tears, grief, and guilt.

“ _Buir…_ ” The clone didn't know what else to say. 

Wolffe sounded like a puppy whining, making the old Jedi want to hide Wolffe from the world. Plo stepped closer, testing the boundaries. Wolffe seemed hesitant, like he didn’t know whether to leave or attack his General into a hug.

Hearing Wolffe’s inner thoughts whispering in the back of his powerful mind, Plo knew that Wolffe wanted to remain strong in front of his General, and that he was being weak.

“You don’t have to be strong on my account, Wolffe. You’ve been strong long enough.” Plo said, startling Wolffe. It pulled at his heartstrings.

Plo carefully pulled Wolffe closer by the back of his neck. Wolffe submissively went with the motion, his face buried in father’s shoulder. Wolffe sobbed harshly into Plo’s robes, cries ripping painfully out of his throat.

“I’m sorry, _Buir_ , I’m so sorry,” the twenty-two-year-old whimpered to his father.

“I won’t think of you any less, Wolffe. Never,” Plo whispered to him.

Wolffe didn’t stop crying. His sobs never seemed to cease. All his pain and sorrow and emotions he shoved deep down came bubbling back up like a held back volcano. 

Aching, raw pain-

Life-altering grief-

Gut twisting fear-

Feeling powerless-

Vengeful anger-

Wrecked by self-hatred-

Drowning sadness-

Shattering heartbreak-

_It was all your fault_.

Wolffe stopped breathing.

_You sat and watched as your men–your brothers–were killed and slaughtered in front of you. A voice from the past echoed in his mind._

Wolffe shut his eyes, only seeing flashes of scarlet blood, corpses—bodies of those he loved dearly, and a bright purple hew coming towards him with a bone-rattling hum.

_And you. Did. Nothing. You worthless piece of s–_

“Hush, shhhhh. Breathe, Wolffe, breathe.”

Wolffe choked as he inhaled sharply. He pressed closer to his father’s chest, arms wrapping tighter around the Jedi’s waist. 

The young man continued to cry out his guilt, grief, sadness, and other crippling emotions. Plo would shush him soothingly every once and a while, talons passing through Wolffe’s hair.

Plo didn’t try to speak to him or move drastically; he knew Wolffe wouldn’t want his body position to change. All he did was pet Wolffe’s hair or squeeze him tighter to bring more comfort. He sent soothing waves of reassurance to him through the Force, hoping it would help de-escalate his son’s sobs. 

It must’ve worked because Wolffe stopped crying a few minutes later. Plo decided he was stable enough to be moved around and he moved slowly to sit Wolffe down on the bed. Wolffe sat down heavily on the cushioned material. He childishly didn’t want to pull away from the embrace, so he placed his head on the Jedi’s shoulder. It was close enough to a hug.

Plo stared down at the trooper as he got a grip on himself and dried his eyes. Plo’s dark talons never stilled in Wolffe’s hair, gently stroking it, feeling Wolffe lean into the soft touch.

Plo knew they needed to have a conversation about a lot of things. It would be a painful conversation for both of them; they would have to reopen old wounds and tears were most likely an outcome.

“Wolffe, we have some things we need to discuss,” the older man started gently.

Wolffe tensed under his hand, muscles seizing up. “About what?”

Plo sighed, not wanting to put his son through more pain, “Grieving.”

“I-” Wolffe started but trailed off. He braced his arms on the edge of the bed, sighing shakily, pushing his tears back. Plo’s hand traveled from Wolffe’s head to his shoulder blades. 

He pushed forward, “I understand what you’re going through, Wolffe. I understand the pain that you’re feeling for the loss of your brothers. You feel it every day so you close yourself up to hide from the pain.” Plo shifted his son so Wolffe was facing him. The Commander bit the inside of his cheek, looking at Plo through his eyelashes.

“But Wolffe, you cannot lock yourself away. Your brothers don’t just need a Commander,” Plo tilted Wolffe’s chin up softly, “they need their older brother.”

Wolffe shook his head. “I don’t know how to do that. I can’t be their older brother anymore. We’d all relive the same pain if one of us were to die. I can’t do that, not to them, not again.”

Plo stroked Wolffe’s cheek comfortingly. “I know Wolffe, but you can’t do this to yourself. Look what happened to you and Comet; he is supposed to be your baby brother, but instead, you considered him a stranger to you.”

Wolffe bristled at the comment, feeling guilty about Comet. He didn’t know how to fix it though.

“He needs you, Wolffe. He’s a child made for and forced into war, and he needs his older brother more than ever, to guide him through whatever pain or suffering may come his way. He doesn’t have anyone else.”

“Why did you bring him to us? Was it to teach me a lesson?” Wolffe growled.

“No, my son. It wasn’t to teach you a lesson. I thought he would be good for all of you, but I was wrong. It does not matter now, he won’t be with you soon.” Plo felt a little hurt that Wolffe believed he took Comet in to make Wolffe angry.

Wolffe blinked at him. “What do you mean?”

“He is going to be transferred to the 501st. He will also be in the Alpha Company with Captain Rex,” Plo stated simply. 

Wolffe seemed troubled like he couldn’t choose what to say.

“Is something wrong, Wolffe?”

“I-I don’t know.”

Plo smiled lightly, hoping his plan to get them to talk would work. “Talk to him about it. However, we aren’t done talking.”

Wolffe’s heart dropped. He just wanted to be done with the conversation already.

“Wolffe? Do you blame me for what happened in the Abregado system?” Plo Koon asked simply.

Wolffe stared at his General, gobsmacked. “No! Why would I?!”

Plo responded calmly, “Because I am a Jedi and that I should have sensed the incoming deaths of my men before they happened.”

“You couldn’t have known!”

Plo hushed Wolffe lightly, “That’s exactly my point, Wolffe. No one would have known of the incoming danger.”

Wolffe was confused and it showed on his face. 

“Wolffe,” Plo whispered, “I know you blame yourself for what happened to your brothers. I’ve been told time and time again that you do.” Plo made sure to say ‘brothers’ instead of ‘troopers’.

Wolffe glared at the floor as tears blurred his vision, and he attempted to swallow them back, but all they did was sting in the back of his throat. 

“I’m their Commander. I’m supposed to protect them! Not lead them to their deaths.”

Silent tears made their way out of Wolffe’s eyes and down his face, but Wolffe wiped them away in deviance. 

“That’s not your responsibility Wolffe. You’re only human; you can only do so much. If anyone is supposed to protect all of you, it’s me.”

Wolffe was quiet, not making any noise or movement.

“Wolffe?”

The Commander’s golden eyes slowly closed. 

Plo carefully dropped into a crouch in front of his upset son. He cupped Wolffe’s face tenderly, thumb tracing the scar that went through Wolffe’s right eye, light in comparison to his natural skin tone, trailing from the top eyelid to the bottom.

“Please open your eyes, my son?” Plo begged quietly.

Wolffe couldn’t ignore his father’s request. His one bloodshot golden eye and the other white looked at Plo, completely vulnerable.

“It wasn’t your fault, Wolffe. I promise you it wasn’t your fault. You have to move on. Open yourself up again. And I’m not saying forget about those we have lost. Carry on their memory through the brothers that you have. You have to love Comet too, don’t leave him in the dust alone.”

Wolffe finally felt everything shift into place. His eyes clear up in realization.

“Okay,” he answered plainly, but it held so many emotions.

“You should talk to Comet in the morning and see if you can talk to Rex as well.”

Wolffe nodded. He stood up and made his way to leave and go to the barracks, but he stopped in his steps. He turned around and tightly hugged his father.

“Thank you, _Buir_ ,” Wolffe whispered into his chest.

Plo whispers back, “Of course.” He let Wolffe go, directing the young man out the door. 

Wolffe made his way to the barracks, slightly dreading his brothers’ reactions. He expected Arks, the _osik’ika_ , to chew him out; the others would just glare at him.

He was right. As soon as he walked into the barracks and made his way into the common rooms, he was met with glares from each member of the Wolfpack. Sinker, Boost, Ace, and Arks were sitting around, and they all turned their heads when the door sounded.

Arks, without taking his glaring eyes off Wolffe, signed rapidly to the others. “ _I’ve got this. Go see Blitz and the kid.”_

Sinker and Boost got up without hesitation, but Ace lingered back. Boost ended up yanking on his arm, making Ace curse him out and follow after him.

Ark pointed firmly to the couch and Wolffe obliged him. He gingerly sat down, facing Arks.

“ _You are an asshole.”_

Wolffe chuckled under his breath. _I don’t know what else I expected._ He signed back to Arks.

“ _He is a teenager Wolffe. A child! You had no right to do that to him. It took us forever to calm him down because you put the fear of Gods in him. What the hell, Wolffe?”_

Wolffe sighed. “I know, Arks. I shouldn’t have done that and I’m sorry.”

Arks shook his head in disappointment. “ _What happened to you, Wolffe?”_

The older clone felt a knife penetrate his stomach. Wolffe was going to let him speak first. To his extreme displeasure, tears started to shine in Arks’ eyes.

“ _What happened to the brother that I grew up with on Kamino? You were always kind to me even if you were a year older. Then when I was s…”_ Arks’ hands stopped momentarily, then resumed, “ _when everything went down with the trainers, and Jango took care of it, you were always right there for me.”_

Wolffe nodded along.

“ _Jango always taught us that nothing matters more than family–_ Aliit.” 

Wolffe was shocked when Arks whispered an actual word, but he soon quickly realized because there wasn’t a word in sign language that captured the meaning of the word.

“ _I don’t know you anymore, Wolffe.”_ Wolffe knew Arks was dead serious because he started crying softly. Arks rarely cried. Now Wolffe felt horrible.

“ _I just want my big brother back…”_

Arks couldn’t sign anymore, his body was shaking too much. Wolffe swiftly wrapped him in a hug, tucking Arks’ head under his chin. Wolffe’s hand traveled over the medic’s back, holding him flush against him.

“Shhhhh, shhhhh. I’m back, Arks. I swear I’m back. I’m so sorry that I made you feel this way, Arks. None of you deserved this.”

Arks nodded into his chest, uncharacteristically nuzzling closer. “I love you,” Arks whispered, almost not able to be heard.

Wolffe smiled down at him. “I love you too, Ark’ika.”

  
  
  


“Are you going to talk to him?” Rex startled Wolffe the next morning on their way to the mess hall.

“Who? Comet?”

Rex rolled his eyes. “No, Fox. Of course, I mean Comet!”

“I mean, I guess so,” Wolffe mumbled.

“Well, you better, because if you don’t, you won’t get the chance _ori’vod_ ,” Rex warned grimly. Wolffe raised an eyebrow in question.

“He’s being transferred to the 501st today.”

Wolffe and Rex fell into silence after the statement was said. Wolffe stepped into the mess hall, scanning the tables. His eyes fell on Comet who was sitting farther away from everyone else.

Wolffe hesitated. Rex pushed his shoulder, obviously shooing him in the direction of Comet.

“Just do it, Wolffe. Get it over with,” Fives called from his spot at the table, pulling Rex’s hand to sit down next to him. 

Wolffe glared at the ARC trooper but slowly took a step forward. “You and I are talking after this, little brother,” Wolffe said to Rex.

Instead of Wolffe going to Comet, he sat down next to the Wolfpack. He mouthed to Rex, “ _Give me a minute.”_

Wolffe stared at the table, trying to wrangle his thoughts into coherent sentences. He looked up again at Rex, five minutes had passed already. Rex smiled gently and cocked his head towards the side, gesturing to Comet. Wolffe sighed as he stood up abruptly and made his way towards Comet. 

Blitz watched as his Commander walked towards the teenager out of the corner of his eye. Blitz tried to jump out of the seat, thinking Wolffe was going to traumatize the kid further but two pairs of hands on his arms stopped him. Arks had a grip on Blitz’s left arm, and Ace had a softer one on his right arm. 

Ace said, “Sit down or I’ll hold you down.” He gave Blitz a simple look.

Blitz reluctantly sat down, fidgeting lightly to distract himself. Ace changed his grip from his arm to his hand, squeezing comfortingly.

“As I said before, I won’t let Wolffe hurt him,” Ace reminded him.

Wolffe sat down on the opposite side of the table, facing Comet. The Wolfpack table went silent, watching with intriguing. 

Comet looked up, startled when he saw a figure sit in front of him. His eyes lifted, gaze falling on Wolffe. Comet’s body went on autopilot and he froze, about to stand and walk away from the situation.

“Can we talk?”

Comet’s movements faltered; usually, the Commander was ordering him around, never asking for permission. Comet nodded timidly but held eye contact with Wolffe.

Wolffe ran a tired hand down his face. “I’m sorry, Comet.”

The teenager stared at him with innocent eyes.

“You were right,” Wolffe gave him a sad smile, “I took my grief and anger out on you. You were an easy target because you didn’t want to get close to us, and I didn’t want to get close to you either. I was angrier at myself than I was at you, but I took my anger out on you to make sure it was impossible for me to get attached to you.”

Comet broke his gaze, fingers fidgeting on the table. 

“But,” Comet looked up again, “if I looked very closely, I did find myself getting attached. And I ripped away your chance of having an older brother from you.”

Wolffe and Comet still looked at each other, completely open books.

Comet still fidgeted when he spoke, “You didn’t. You didn’t take my chance away. I mean, if we didn’t fight yesterday, would you be sitting here right now?”

“No, I wouldn’t.”

Comet smiled, still a little timid. “See? Progress already.”

Wolffe sighed again, feeling very guilty, “Comet, I want to try again. I didn’t treat you right the first time. I think that-no, I know the second time I will put the effort into me being the older brother you need. Will you let me try again?”

Comet smiled, young innocence shining through, and this time Wolffe was okay with that.

“Of course.”

Wolffe returned the smile. He turned and pointed to the others. “Go sit with the others.”

His youngest squadmate caught his eye, a smug look spread across his face.

“I need to have a conversation with my _osik’ika_ little brother,” Wolffe said.

Wolffe walked away from the Wolfpack table to Torrent’s table. Kix and Jesse were connected at the hip, with Fives and Hardcase bickering about something and Echo just watching the scene unfold.

Wolffe sat directly across from Rex, glaring at him heatlessly. Hardcase tried to move closer to eavesdrop but Kix flicked him on the ear, making him retreat.

“He was never going to be transferred, was he?” Wolffe asked knowingly, seeing Rex’s smirk grow.

“No, he wasn’t.”

“ _Karking_ hell, Rex.” Wolffe dropped his head onto the table with a soft thunk.

“It was the only way to get you to talk to him. There _was_ a transfer request for him, but it was denied a few days ago by General Koon,” Rex said matter-of-factly.

Wolffe lifted his head, still glaring at his brother. “I thought you said you weren’t going to have kids in Torrent.”

Rex chuckled at his brother, like he was clueless, “I stand by that statement, Wolffe. If Koon didn’t deny the transfer, I would’ve done so myself. If I’m going to have a kid in Torrent, it will be on my terms and no one else’s. But that’s a conversation for another day.”

Wolffe kicked Rex under the table playfully.

“Go back to your kid, Wolffe.” Rex shook his head at him.

* * *

_Two months later…._

Comet had adjusted well to the 104th. He was permanently assigned to the Wolfpack, now spending every day with his brothers. They began to open up to him, and in return, he started to open up back. Soon, they knew the teenager like the backs of their hands, but a few major details were missing that would never be forgotten again. 

Comet sat on one of the couches, fingers drumming on his leg. He was staring into space, the comforting presence of his brothers making him sleepy. 

“Comet?” a concerned voice called his name. He turned his head to the brother that had spoken, seeing it was Sinker.

“Are you okay?”

Comet smiled, confused but nodded. “Why do you ask?”

“You were staring into space for a while, kiddo.”

Comet frowned, he swore he had only spaced out for five minutes. “For how long?”

“At least forty minutes. Are you sure you’re okay?”

Comet nodded timidly. “Yeah, I’m probably just tired.”

Blitz lifted Comet up by the shoulders. Comet whined, not wanting to be moved. The others chuckled lightly.

Comet begrudgingly made his way to bed, collapsing onto his soft, cold—but soon to be warm—blankets in exhaustion. His fingers began to tap again on their own, pulling him out of his haze of tiredness.

He stayed in silence still fidgeting. Comet only turned his head when the door opened with a soft whoosh, seeing his older brothers all enter the bunk room at the same time. 

“Comet? Why are you still awake?” Blitz asked, taking a seat on Comet’s bunk.

“I can’t fallllll asleeeeeeep,” Comet slurred, tired, but not able to fall asleep.

Blitz saw Comet’s hand tapping the grey metal on the foot bar of the bunk bed. Blitz’s finger wandered through Comet’s soft hair. The older trooper hoped that physical touch would help Comet’s predicament. Comet soon fell into a slumber, his body leaning into Blitz’s hand.

Blitz pulled himself out of Comet’s bunk and looked up to his own bunk that he shares with Ace—Ace has his own bunk, but he hates sleeping alone. Blitz quickly debated on climbing up the ladder to sleep with Ace or just sleep on his own, maybe in Ace’s old bunk. Blitz managed to pull his tired body up the metal bars and laid himself on top of Ace.

Ace rolled his eyes fondly, shifting Blitz into a better position. They both fell asleep. Exactly two hours later, everyone’s commlinks went off in unison, their non-stop beeping waking them up.

Wolffe groaned, knowing the only reason they were being awoken was that there was an important, last-minute mission they needed to complete.

“ _Kriff_ thissss shit,” Sinker complained with a sleepy slur, rubbing his eyes.

Boost jumped down from the top bunk, landing gracefully onto the metal floor, and reached for his armor. Ace had to physically pull Blitz off of the bunk to wake him up. Blitz slapped his hand away once he was on the floor, finally awake, and he put his armor on at a slow, lazy pace. Wolffe and Arks finished with their armor before everyone else; out of habit.

Comet blinked his eyes open, then closed them again. He sunk into the bed for a few more seconds before pulling himself up. As quickly as possible, he put his armor on and tucked his helmet under his arm.

It was a haze for Comet as they walked to the briefing room. He barely remembered getting onto the LAAT and landing on a planet with a name that escapes him. The 104th was paired with the 212th this time around; Comet could tell by the coloring on their armor.

_Yellow yellow._ He smiles under his white helmet, no longer shiny white, as he earned his colors after his first successful mission. He killed an exact number of 31 B1-series battle droids. 

Comet’s helmet is now painted with dark grey triangle-like patterns going across the cheekbone part of the helmet, and grey covered the majority of the chin in solid color. The grey going across the cheekbones come up to the bridge of the nose and meet up, becoming one, then move up the middle between his eyes before quickly separating into two thin stripes and curves.

Boost made fun of the top part though after he took a closer look at it once Comet’s paint dried. He told the poor guy that the top part kind of resembled a woman’s V-part. Arks and Blitz slapped Boost for that, that day.

“Well, this place looks like a dump,” Wolffe commented to Cody, watching as their General conferred with each other.

“We’re trying to negotiate with the nearby village to let us help them, but they still want us gone. They think that we will bring the Separatist along with us,” Cody explained, but the others could hear the annoyance in his tone of voice.

Wolffe was about to respond, but a Separatist ship entered the atmosphere.

Wolffe mumbled, “Dammit.”

“Ready all tanks!” Cody yelled to his troopers.

Soon, the droids flew to the planet, firing at will. Comet and the Wolfpack quickly ducked behind cover, shooting back as they did so. 

“Stay away from the cliff,” one of the 212th clones warned, Comet remembered his name as Waxer.

“Copy that.”

Minutes upon minutes passed by; just laser fire flew past them. Bodies fell to the ground. Medics ran left and right to save those who could be saved. Screams rang across the barren field.

Comet remained laser-focused though at all times, trying to take out as many droids as he could. A 212th medic was standing next to him, almost doing the same thing as Comet. Comet looked at him from the corner of his eye. He did a double-take. The medic looked very young, even with his helmet on.

Comet was pulled from his thoughts by one of his brothers shouting.

“Landslide!”

Comet glanced to the right, seeing the cliff side disappearing. Comet was too close. His hand was grabbed by one of his brothers, but Comet slipped out of their grasp. He fell down the cliffside with the young 212th member falling with him.

Comet was in free fall for three seconds before he slammed on his back on a jutted out flat plain that had saved him from certain doom. The bottom of the ravine was quite far down from where he was. Comet felt something crack when he had made an impact with the hard surface, and it was suddenly hard to breathe. The 212th trooper landed a few feet away, groaning as he moved.

Comet tried to move but he couldn’t breathe when he did.

“Don’t move, you might have a spinal injury,” the young medic ordered softly, pulling his helmet off. The medic carefully made his way over to his fallen brother, kneeling beside him.

He gingerly took Comet’s helmet off, one hand cradling the Wolfpack member’s neck so it wouldn’t move and worsen the damage. The medic knew he probably shouldn’t have taken his brother’s helmet off in case of a neck injury, but it was too late now.

When the medic got a good look at the trooper lying down next to him. The medic was shocked to find that the Wolfpack teenager was much younger than he was.

The 104th trooper smiled up at the medic to the best of his ability. “What’s your name?”

The medic smiled at the conversationalist tone of the teenager. “Wooley. Yours?”

“I’m Comet. Sorry, we couldn’t meet in better circumstances,” Comet chuckled lightly, grimacing a bit afterward.

Wooley smiled. “No time like the present.”

Comet sighed shakily, hands clenching in pain.

“Where are you in pain?” Wooley smiles sadly.

“Chest and my lower back,” Comet answered tightly.

Wooley nodded, mentally making a checklist or paralysis. “Can you turn your neck at all? Don’t do too much, but can you move it for me?”

Comet slowly turned his head side to side, not feeling any pain except whiplash. 

“Good. Are you sore in your neck or back?”

“Kinda in my back.”

Wooley slid his hands under Comet’s lower back, pressing on it lightly. “Can you move your toes?”

Comet put an extreme amount of effort into the motion. “Barely.”

Wooley smiled reassuringly. “Good. Even if you can barely move them, you don’t have paralysis. Now you most likely have a spinal injury, but not a serious one. It’s probably just a couple of pinched disks or nerves.”

Wooley saw Comet wince in pain as he took in a breath. His hands traveled from Comet’s back to his chest. He took his palm and pressed on different spots on Comet's chest. Comet whimpered when the medic’s hands pressed on certain parts of his chest.

“Your ribs are broken,” Wooley said under his breath.

Comet’s eyes were slowly blinking, exhaustion settling in.

“Try and stay awake for me, Comet,” Wooley said in his ear but pulled away.

“Damn it,” Comet heard the other teenager curse under his breath. Wooley pressed a hand to his own collarbone. His hand pulled away slick with blood.

“What the hell?” Comet became concerned, his brotherly instincts kicking in for the first time.

“I’m pretty sure my collarbone is broken and visible from the outside,” Wooley explained, trying to lower the blow.

“Are you saying if I looked I would see the bone?”

“Mhm,” Wooley closed his eyes tightly, but they opened a few seconds after. The older teenager looked up, observing the cliffside above, hearing distant gunfire.

“We should be safe down here unless another landslide hits.”

Comet tried to acknowledge him but his eyes were slipping closed.

“Comet, stay awake,” Wooley tone had concern in it.

Comet could hear and feel Wooley trying to shake him awake but he was too far gone. Comet slipped into unconsciousness, and Wooley’s voice slowly became just an echo in his mind.

  
  


An obnoxious beeping noise seeped into Comet’s semi-consciousness. It ripped him out of sleep. His eyes fluttered open. His chest was tight. The teenager groaned softly, pain erupting all over his body. He couldn’t breathe. It was like he was inhaling water over and over again. His body was achy and sore, and he knew if he tried to walk he would collapse in a heap on the ground.

Comet stared at the ceiling when it came into view. 

_Medbay. Great job, Comet_.

Comet groaned again, even staying motionless hurt him in so many ways.

“Stay still, kid,” a voice he had never heard gently ordered. They may all have the same face, but everyone could decipher who was who just by the certain accent—may be adopted based on what side of the galaxy a trooper was stationed in most of the time, or based on which Jedi was their General, or simply the pitch of their voice unless you’re Arks and don’t talk.

Comet blinked up blearily at a medic with yellow markings on his armor–a 212th trooper Comet confirmed.

“If you move, you’ll aggravate your back injuries even more.”

Comet’s head fell back onto the pillow. “What happened?” 

The medic moved closer to him, crossing his arms over his chest. “You fractured three of your lower vertebrae and broke five others. You also pinched your lumbar nerve, so that is going to be a pain in the _shebs_ later.”

Comet nodded through the pain, now knowing it wasn’t going away anytime soon. “How long will the pain last?”

The medic bit his lip in contemplation. “Roughly a week for the nerve damage, but the fractures will take two to maybe three weeks. I don’t want to keep you stuck in here for three weeks though. You’ll be in the barracks on bed rest once I feel comfortable enough to release you without me being scared you’ll further damage your back even more.”

The 212th medic felt waves of sympathy course through him as his younger brother continuously winced in pain. He quickly grabbed a hypo of pain medication and lifted Comet’s left arm gently. Comet looked away as he saw the hypo that was about to go into his arm. 

“You don’t like needles, do you?” the older clone teased. Comet just nodded plainly, not enjoying the feeling of the needle piercing his skin.

Once the medic was done giving him a shot, he began to check Comet’s vitals, and he casually told Comet his name, “My name’s Helix by the way.”

Comet chuckled lightly, “I’m Comet.”

The next day, Comet had gotten a pleasant distraction from his pain. Wooley had been placed in the bed next to him, arm supported in a white sling. Wooley seemed to be in the same amount of pain as Comet.

Comet and Wooley were talking when suddenly two other clones walked into the medbay.

“Damn it, Wooley. What the hell did you do?”

The hurt teenager chuckled lightly, “I decided to fall off the edge of a cliff with this one over here,” Wooley gestured to Comet beside him.

Comet had a fake appalled look on his face. “Uh, excuse you! I hope you realize it wasn’t like I dragged you in with me.”

“Huh. He has an acceptable amount of sass,” the seemingly oldest noted.

“Why thank you,” Comet responded with a smirk, “I’m Comet.

“Zeke,” the same boy responded.

“I’m Jake,” the boy by Zeke’s side said in a small tone.

“And you've already met me,” Wooley joked.

“So how did you guys meet?” Comet asked curiously, shifting so he was sitting up more.

“We’re all the youngest in the Alpha Companies. I’m with Windu. Jake is with General Secura. And Wooley is with Kenobi.”

Comet smiled knowingly. “So all that’s missing is Skywalker and Koon.”

“Mhm. The squad is still incomplete,” Wooley said sadly.

“Well, you’ll be happy to hear you’ve got another member to your ‘Youngest in the Alpha Companies’ squad.”

The others tilted their heads in confusion.

“I am the youngest of the 104th,” Comet explained.

They all smiled and laughed.

“Heyyyy!” Wooley grinned.

The oldest of the three, Zeke, says, “Welcome to the club, Comet.”

Helix walked back over, coming to Comet’s side and he started taking his vitals again. “Aw look at all the kiddos getting along.”

Wooley rolled his eyes in good nature.

Helix smiled, finishing up with his assessment of Comet’s vitals. “You should be good to go. I don’t see any reason to keep you here longer. It may hurt, but I will walk back to the barracks with you; I want to make sure you don’t have any paralysis. And I’ll carry you if it gets too painful.”

Comet nodded and carefully pulled his legs off the bed. He inhaled sharply as his back screamed in protest. His breaths became heavy. 

“You were right. This fucking hurts.”

Helix gripped Comet’s arm to help him stand up. Comet took a few hesitant steps forward, feeling fire in his back. He stopped immediately after the 4th step.

“Try to walk, Comet. It’s going to hurt but I want you to try,” Helix coached him lightly.

Comet shook his head. “It hurts too bad.”

Helix pursed his lips, thinking of a solution. He looked back at the other teenagers watching them. 

“Jake? Can you help me with him?”

Jake nodded with a soft smile. He went to Comet’s open side, slinging Comet’s arm over his shoulders.

With Helix and Jake’s help, Comet was able to walk without an insane amount of pain. They gradually made their way to the 104th barracks, taking most of Comet’s weight. Helix typed the passcode into the metal keypad, letting Jake completely support Comet. 

Helix and Jake took Comet a few more steps into the room, seeing the Wolfpack standing up to meet them. Arks and Ace took Helix’s and Jake’s spot, slowly helping Comet to the bunk room.

“Is he going to be okay?” Blitz asked, worried about their youngest. 

“Yes, he’ll be fine. He is on bed rest, but I want him to move a few times a day to make sure he doesn’t lose any muscle energy. He should stay on his stomach most of the time when laying down though. He should also let his ribs breathe without the bandages.”

“Thank you,” Blitz thanked Helix, then going to meet the others in the bunk room.

Wolffe was about to follow, but he turned back to the shy teenager. “Thank you, Jake.”

Jake seemed a little startled but smiled nonetheless.

Wolffe swiftly made his way to the bunk room knowing the rest of his brothers were already there. Everyone was sitting around Comet’s bed, who was laying on his side.

“How are you feeling, kid?” Wolffe asked as he took his spot on the edge of Comet’s bed. 

“Like my body is burning as we speak, but other than that, I’m just tired.”

Wolffe stroked Comet’s hair softly, working the pads of his fingers in Comet’s scalp. “Try and get some rest, kiddo.”

Comet nodded, eyes already falling shut. Wolffe stayed with him for a few more minutes before he went to his own bunk. It wasn’t lights out time, but they decided to stay in the room with Comet. They all fell asleep before the lights shut off.

Comet woke up feeling a sharp pain stab his spine. He cried out in discomfort, then slapped a hand up to his mouth to keep the cries muffled.

He heard rustling around the room somewhere but he didn’t pay much attention to it. Comet curled up into a ball but had to uncurl because the position shot worse pain through him from his spine to his legs. He had woken up a few times before that night but his pain had never been this bad.

Comet saw one of his older brothers kneel in front of him. Based on the large frame and the two different eyes, it was his eldest brother in the Wolfpack.

“Is your back hurting?” Wolffe asked softly, not touching him just yet.

“Mhm,” Comet whined, tears making their way out of his amber eyes.

Wolffe gingerly put his hand on Comet’s lower back, stopping his shuffling.

“I-I’m n-not made of g-glass, Wolffe,” Comet commented lightly, tears not disappearing. 

“I know you’re not, Comet. But I’ve hurt you before.”

“Yeah, t-two months a-ago. It d-doesn’t matter now,” Comet told him reassuringly.

Wolffe sat on the bed, ignoring the gut-twisting fear, and cradled Comet’s head in his lap. Comet sunk into him, trying to dry his eyes. Comet’s knees jerked up and he cried when his back twinged in pain. Wolffe’s hands shot out to hold him straight, dropping a kiss to Comet’s head.

“Shhh, shhh. You have to stay flat or it’ll hurt more, Com’ika,” Wolffe directed into Comet’s soft, dark hair. Comet made an effort to follow his brother's advice, sighing in relief when the pain lessened.

Wolffe kept Comet in the same position for the rest of the night. They both managed to get some sleep Comet less than Wolffe, but it was ideal. 

Comet woke up with less amount of pain, his back still hurt though. He carefully rolled over in Wolffe’s lap, lying on his stomach, his chin resting on top of Wolffe’s chest. He jostled Wolffe awake by accident, who looked down at him with a fond look in his eye. Comet nuzzled closer, still tired from the pain medication that had made him drowsy in the first place.

“How are you feeling?”

Comet shrugged “Still hurting, but not as much as last that.”

Wolffe ruffled his hair. “Good. Try and get some more rest. Don’t get up unless you have to.”

Over the course of the next three weeks, Comet had gradually started to feel better; it was easier to breathe, he could take the bandages off that bound his chest to keep his ribs still, and his movement was much better.

“Arks, I feel fine. Can I please get up?” Comet begged his older brother.

Arks gave him a skeptical look. Comet shot him his infamous puppy eyes, knowing Arks couldn’t resist their unlimited power.

“ _I don’t know, Comet._ ” Over the past two weeks, Comet had gotten to pick up some phrases in sign language. 

“Please, Arks? I’m bored out of my mind,” Comet pleaded once again.

Arks sighed and quickly signed, “ _Rollover_.”

Comet tucked himself over, stomach pressed against the bunk. Arks sat down next to him, hands running over Comet’s spine. He put pressure on the vertebrae that were broken, testing its durability. The teenager didn’t wince, not once, or show any evidence of pain at all. Arks pressed harder and eventually pulled away.

“ _You’re good. Come on_ ,” Arks gestured to the door, standing up and pulling Comet up as well. Comet followed him out of the room.

“Well, would you look at that. The kid can actually work,” Ace teased Comet, who got a flick to the head by said teenager when he passed by.

The battalion exited the barracks. They had training in five minutes. Comet engaged in some playful banter with the others. 

“How the hell did you fall off a cliff?” Sinker asked, having not been given the whole story, “you were at least ten feet away from it,”.

“It’s not like I asked the cliff to have a landslide, Sinker. And Wooley fell with me so it wasn’t just me,” Comet defended himself and Wooley.

“He’s got you there, Sinker,” Boost snickered.

Sinker sighed, “Fair point.” 

Comet laughed at his defeated expression. The others laughed along with him. Comet suddenly collided with another clone. Comet, reacting on instinct, reached out to steady the other clone.

“Sorry.” The boy apologized.

Comet met eyes with, surprisingly, another teenager. The boy’s eyes held a type of innocence but were haunted at the same time. His hair was pulled back into a loose bun, a few strands slipping out that made him look younger somehow. 

Comet’s hands gripped the other’s forearms. His chest felt fuzzy for some odd reason. Comet swiftly let go so he wouldn’t get pulled along with the young boy.

Everything ended as fast as it started.

Comet smiled. “No problem.”

As they both parted ways, it went unnoticed that both of them felt static crackle and pop within their veins. Comet brushed it off as being shocked when he touched the other teenager, but they both knew deep down there was something else there. Something they’ve never felt before. Something...unexplainable.

He watched as the teenager caught back up with his own unit. Comet swallowed back his shock when he saw familiar blue markings he’s never seen in-person before. 

“Comet! Hurry your ass up!” Wolffe called to him over his shoulder. 

Comet swiftly caught back up to the Wolfpack, knowing he would probably forget about the altercation and static by next week.

But one thing was for sure. A new teenager was present.

The 501st had a new member. 

  
  


“You weren’t kidding when you said he didn’t have a happy beginning with you,” Tup commented quietly once Wolffe had finished his story.

Wolffe smiled sadly. “It took us a while, but we came around. And we love him very much.”

Tup leaned more of his weight onto Wolffe’s shoulder. “That story was sad, and crazy, but really sweet at the same time,” Tup sounded confused on what he truly felt about it, making Wolffe laugh.

“We all have that same feeling when we think back to Comet’s arrival with us.”

“And surprisingly, I’ve learned something from that story,” Tup said in a wistful tone.

Wolffe wrapped an arm around the teenager. “I think we all can.” Wolffe smiles. “Now, part of the reason I told you this story was to give you a distraction, but another part is to give you a lesson,” Wolffe looked down at Tup who lifted his head up.

Tp cocked his head to the side.

“If you ever do anything that we did to Comet, even remotely, I will find you and make you regret it with your life. I will not show you mercy, no matter what you say. I will do serious damage to you, got it?”

Tup nodded with urgency, and chuckled nervously, “Yep. Got it.”

“Wolffe? Would you please not bully and threaten my boyfriend, please? He’s already been through enough as it is,” Comet voice called out from the hall, amusement embedded in it.

Wolffe growled at Comet playfully, “I’m not going to apologize for being protective of you, Comet.”

Wolffe stood up after Tup took his head off Wolffe's broad shoulder. Wolffe patted Comet on the shoulder on the way out of the room. He was heading right back towards the barracks.

Comet stood in front of Tup and smiled down at him. Tup smiled back, a little forced but Comet took it. The older teenager pulled his boyfriend up from the floor, hugging him close.

Tup sighed contently into the hug, feeling warmth surge through his body, allowing him to relax. He felt the familiar crackling sensation in his veins; the same feeling he always got every time he touched Comet. 

“Are you feeling better?” Comet murmured into Tup’s ear.

“A little…”

Comet pressed a kiss to Tup’s brow, then kissed him on the lips. Tup melted into the kiss, feeling everything fall away. Right now it was just him and Comet, and no one can take Comet away from him.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'all, this chapter was only supposed to be about eleven pages long. It is 28 pages.
> 
> Beta reader/Editor- @AngelWars (Ao3) She is amazing 💙
> 
> Thank you all so much. Requests are welcome, and I hope you enjoyed this chapter.
> 
> What do you think?


	35. Chapter 35-Heatstroke

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Resolute is stuck next to a burning star for approximately nine hours. One of the troopers is bound to get sick... but who is it?

“Fuck this,” Hardcase groaned, wiping sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand. The heavy gunner was laying on the ground, trying to get as much of the cool feeling of it as he could.

The  _ Resolute _ had been passing by a burning hot star for the past five hours. The star was depleting a lot of energy from the ship, making the thrusters not move them forward fast enough. They were supposed to be on Coruscant by now but that wasn’t going to be the case for the next few hours. And their hot predicament didn’t seem to be ending any time soon.

Everyone was suffering; it didn’t matter which clone, they were all pissed and burning to death. At the current moment, no one was safe from starting a heat-induced argument. Luckily nobody had killed any of their brothers but it wasn’t safe to say it wouldn’t happen.

“No shit, Hardcase. We are basically sitting ducks next to a fucking star that is hot as fuck. Think and use your brain for once,” Fives snapped, glaring at the heavy gunner from his spot on the ground, leaning against the wall.

“Shut the hell-”

“Oh hell no. Don’t you two even start,” Echo broke in, yelling from the other side of the room.

They were all stripped of their top armor, remaining in their bottom half of armor. Echo looked tempted to chuck both of his shoulder guards at Fives and Hardcase.

Fives glared daggers, more like heated daggers at Echo. Echo glared right back. 

“Shut up, Echo. Stay out of it.”

The glaring match continued until the youngest member of their group huffed an exhausted whine. 

Tup was irritated and bothered, feeling his anxiety itch in the back of his boiling mind, threatening to cause him to panic and have an anxiety attack. 

“Please, just stop arguing,” Tup requested, running his hands through his scalp. 

His hair was down, soft, light waves falling over his tan shoulders. He was so close to just leaving and finding one of the other teenagers—maybe his boyfriend— who's battalion had crashed on the Resolute cruiser for the time being. Tup won’t move from his spot though, because if he did his brothers would rip each other’s head off, and it seemed Tup was the peacekeeper at the moment. So many arguments had unfortunately broken out between the battalions that Tup had lost count.

Echo and Fives continued to glare daggers at each other silently, neither of them backing down. Fives was about to say something snippy to Echo but he was cut off.

“I said fucking cut it out!” Tup uncharacteristically yelled at them. 

The members of the battalion, along with Torrent—that were in the barracks as well and not somewhere else—looked to their teenager with gobsmacked expressions. A couple of clones near Cable and Talon started whispering to each other.

Tup didn’t pay them any mind, banging the back of his head carelessly on the wall with his eyes clenched shut. The anxious teenager was annoyed at the moment; he was just too hot and tired to deal with his brother’s crap.

His brothers were looking at him, the anger between Fives and Echo completely gone, except Fives was giving Tup a questionable glance. Tup’s anger-fueled shout had shocked them completely. The young trooper never spoke out of anger, and if he did, it was very rare. It was unnerving for them. Tup was always so sweet and kind to others even if they didn't return the kindness to him. The sun was obviously affecting the young one too.

Fives shot his kid a glare nonetheless. “You better watch your mouth. Don’t get snippy with me, little one.”

Tup rolled his eyes, acting like the way a teenager should act but he’s a soldier. There was no time for childish things in a war; according to a few Admirals. His brothers were completely fine when he acted his age–eighteen–but this was different. This was on the borderline of disrespect.

Fives saw the eye roll. “Hey! What did I just say, Tup?” He chastised Tup. His kid had started to piss him off the past few days; Tup being moody and snapping at all of them for no reason.

Tup glared at him from the corner of his eye. His chest was starting to heave, it was either the heat or one hell of an anxiety attack.

“Fives! Back the hell off!” Rex’s voice flooded into the room.

Tup and Fives’ heads swiveled to look at their Captain standing in the doorway. The Captain looked tired and hot as the rest of them, but worse. He looked like he was carrying bricks on his back. Rex looked to Tup after giving Fives a well-deserved glare.

“Come here, kid. And Fives, back off.”

Tup gladly stood up, escaping his  _ Buir _ and being rescued by his other  _ Buir _ . Rex grabbed Tup’s shoulder, steering him out of the room.

“We’re talking later, Fives. That’s an order,” Fives knew he was in trouble because Rex made it an order. 

Rex doesn’t give him orders unless they are on the battlefield. He was worried for a few reasons. The first reason is when Rex got mad, it was a rage matched by no one else he knew, except maybe Wolffe or Alpha. The second reason was that he didn’t want Tup to see them fight. He already had things going on with his mental stability the past four weeks, and them fighting in front of him again would only make things worse.

Kix, Jesse, and so many others shared hesitant and worried looks. Fives was banging the back of his weary head against the wall. He regrets yelling at Tup. He didn’t necessarily mean to get pissed off at his kid but the words just came out. 

In Fives’ defense, he had been wanting to yell at Tup for the past three days. Tup had been giving them the cold shoulder almost all day and snapping at least four times a day at them. It was not a pretty sight, seeing their youngest push them away. Fives was steadily losing his patience with the kid.

Rex walked out the door along with Tup. Once Rex let Tup go, Tup started to pace lightly across the floor, back and forth hand gripping his chest. Rex moved cautiously over to Tup. 

“Breathe,  _ ad’ika.  _ You’re not in trouble with Fives or me,” he reassures Tup.

“H-he’s p-pissed at me,  _ Buir _ ,” Tup’s tone was full of fear.

“Yes, he might be mad at you but he’s just stressed, I promise. We’re all stressed right now.”

Tup didn’t respond, too scared to speak.

“Don’t be scared, Tup. Fives loves you and he would never hurt you on purpose.” Rex reassures him.

“I-I k-know he loves me, b-but he can be s-scary s-sometimes,” Tup spilled out the words, not meaning to say that.

“What the hell, Tup? Why’re you so scared, kiddo? Did he do something?” Rex crossed his arms.

“No! I p-promise he d-didn’t do anything! P-please, don’t tell him I s-said that,” Tup begged with big puppy eyes wide in fear.

“Shhhh, shhhhh, hush Tup. If you don’t want me to tell him I won’t,” Rex was very concerned about why Tup was scared of Fives. He knew Fives would never hurt Tup on purpose. Fives loved Tup too much for that.

“Try to breathe deeply, Tup-” 

His comm chimed, interrupting him. Rex groaned, knowing exactly who it was that might be calling him. Either it was his General or another Jedi. Evidently, Skywalker needed him for something, which he didn’t go into detail explaining. Rex would rather not leave Tup, but he had no choice.

_ Damn it, Skywalker. Worst timing ever. _

When Rex looked up from the device, his eyes crinkled up in concern. Tup’s breaths were still labored, gasps came from his diaphragm, but they were no better than a few seconds ago. His honey eyes were tightly shut, and Rex was honestly surprised the teenager wasn’t crying at least a little bit.

Tup leaned into Rex’s frame, feeling his older brother’s arms hold him close. The Captain rocked lightly, breathing deeply so Tup could feel the difference as he rested against Rex’s chest. 

Rex felt his heartstrings pull painfully for his kid. He never liked helping Tup calm down from an anxiety attack because it was painful for him to see Tup so sad or scared, but he wasn’t going to leave his child alone to fend for himself.

“I’m sorry, Tup’ika. I know it sucks right now,” Rex leveled with his teenager.

“I just want things to stop,” Tup muttered.

Rex’s heart dropped. He had so much distaste for that sentence. So many things could be categorized under that simple statement, like; wanting the loud sounds to stop, wanting to stop eating, wanting to stop breathing, wanting to...to stop living. The Captain grimaced at the thought and pulled Tup away from his chest to stare him in the eye.

“Do not say that, Tup. You scare me when you say stuff like that”

Tup honey eyes widened. “That came out w-wrong, I swear! I p-p-promise I didn’t m-mean it!” He started hyperventilating again.

Rex didn’t seem convinced, hearing a genuine tone in that simple statement. It echoed in the back of his tired mind, scaring Rex more. Rex pulled Tup back into a hug. 

“Okay, okay. Just don’t forget we all love you. Okay, kiddo?”

“I’m sorry,” Tup cried softly.

“Oh, Tup,” Rex didn’t know what else to say. He gently placed his head on Tups. “Do you want to sit down for a few minutes?” 

Tup acknowledged the request by nodding against his chest. Rex leaned against the cold metal wall, sighing at the gratifying touch. At least the chilly wall would be better than the stuffy hot air around them.

Rex’s head spun as he tried to sit on the ground with Tup in his arms. Rex put all his weight on the wall, being much slower than normal while he descended the face of it. It was odd because it wasn’t like he had a headache that would cause his vision to tip and waver in place. The younger clone didn’t notice the odd hesitance though.

Tup nestled closer to Rex’s warm chest, feeling hot, but it was lukewarm than before.

“You comfortable down there?” Rex teased lightly, cradling Tup closer.

Tup nodded almost sleepily. “Mhm. You’re warm.”

Rex chuckled, stroking Tup’s hair. “Well, we are next to a star at the moment.”

Tup chuckled at the comment. He and Rex fell into comfortable silence after that. The time continued to tick by, which it would never wait for anyone, so Rex deemed it was time to get up before it got in trouble. Rex and Tup joined their hands together and Rex tugged on him lightly. Rex was going to drop Tup off at the door but Tup hesitated. 

Rex felt Tup stop his movements and he looked back. Tup looked apprehensive about going back into the barracks. 

Rex leaned closer to him. “If you don’t want to go in, go find Wooley or Comet and find a cold spot on the ship.”

There were a few cold spots on the ship that brothers would search out, and occasionally they switched around to take turns cooling off, but Tup hadn’t been there in a while.

“What about you?” Tup asked in a light tone, stopping his advancements down the hall.

“I’ll find one after I’m done with Skywalker.”

Tup nodded and hugged Rex again. 

Rex chuckled, lovingly holding him close, “Go, Tup. And don’t worry about, Fives.”

* * *

Rex wanted to scream. He wanted to be done with the day. He wanted to be done with the meeting he was in. All he wanted to do was _ sleep. _

Rex’s body felt too weak to hold himself up. His muscles seized up painfully, wanting to double over, but that wouldn’t be professional. 

“You boys get some rest. We’ll continue this conversation once we reach Coruscant,” Obi-Wan mercifully dismissed them. 

Rex sighed in relief when his brother’s General dismissed them. The Generals were most definitely feeling the effects of the heat as much as the troopers. Anakin looked the worst of them, ready to fall to his knees. Obi-Wan’s hand was supporting his back as subtly as possible. Cody, Rex, Wolffe, Bly, and Ponds nodded tiredly, turning on their heels and walking away.

Rex stumbled into Cody’s side once they reached the outside of the room, feeling light-headed. Cody instinctively wrapped an arm around his brother’s waist, steadying him. Wolffe grabbed Rex’s other arm, pulling him slightly closer to him to balance him out. Ponds and Bly came to a quick stop behind them.

“Woah, easy  _ vod’ika _ ,” Cody stated, his arm flexing to keep Rex balanced. Ponds hovered around behind Rex, in case he fell backward.

Rex brought his free hand up to his head, pressing his temples to stop the tilting sensation. Cody and Wolffe shared a concerned look with another as they steadied Rex. Ponds and Bly were too focused on their little brother to look at each other.

“Rex? What’s wrong?” Bly asked.

“‘M just dizzy,” Rex stated, his speech slurred slightly.

“Bullshit, Rex. You almost doubled over onto the floor,” Wolffe called, tugging Rex’s arm.

“It’s just the heat, I promise,” Rex compromised with his older brothers, just wanting to go back to the barracks.

Cody looked incredulously at his younger brother, not believing what he was hearing. “You must be joking.”

“Are you sick or something?” Wolffe questioned, letting go of Rex’s right arm.

Rex shook his head slowly, slowly as he could without passing out. “No. It’s just the heat. We all feel like crap so it’s just not me.” 

Wolffe had to agree with his brother; the Wolfpack had been suffering all day. Cody didn’t agree.

“You have to be joking. None of us just ‘almost’ fainted right now,” Cody repeated, grip not loosening on Rex’s bicep.

“Ugh, don’t say it like that.” Rex shook his brother off of him, getting a grip on himself. He looked less dizzy than a few seconds ago and that was the only reason why Cody let Rex shake him off.

The Commanders all mutually and silently agree to follow Rex back to the barracks, not trusting their  _ vod’ika _ to not have a dizzy spell again. Ponds still hovered close by behind Rex, with Bly keeping a hand on Rex’s right shoulder.

Bly’s comm chimed and the Commander pulled it out of his belt. “Damn it,” the others heard Bly mumble.

“What is it?” Pond took Bly’s place.

“Something happened with Jake, but Bailey said it wasn’t anything bad, but Jake wants me,” Bly explained, debating what he should do.

“Go see the kid, Bly. We’ve got him,” Cody whispered the last part to his brother.

Bly walked in the opposite direction, leaving Ponds, Cody, and Wolffe with Rex. Rex continued his way to the barracks. He reached the door and he said his goodbyes to his squadmates before entering the pin into the keypad.

When Rex re-entered in the rec room, Tup was back in the barracks. He was sitting in between Jesse and Kix who were softly playing with his hair. The teenager was curled against Kix’s side, looking exhausted and hot like the rest of them, but almost worse. Rex took this as a win because Tup was much calmer than when he was having the anxiety attack.

Fives was avoiding all eye contact with Rex. He quickly stood up and tried to pass Rex at the door but the Captain was having none of that. 

“Oh no, you don’t.”

Rex gripped his bicep and tossed him back into the room. “We’re talking. Now.”

“There's nothing to talk about. I’m pissed, you're pissed. There you go! We’re done here,” Fives explained sarcastically.

“No, we’re not,” Rex stated calmly, crossing his arms. They didn’t see a certain young member of Torrent roll his eyes.

Fives rolled his amber eyes in annoyance as well, “I don’t need any more crap from you today, Rex.”

Rex’s eyebrows shot up. “Excuse me? You’re the one that’s been bitching all day, Fives. Don’t pull that card with me.”

The heat had unquestionably gone to their heads. Tup dropped his head to Kix’s shoulder with a groan, feeling Jesse reach from the other side to brush his hair with his slim fingers. Kix muttered a few words into Tup’s ear but continued to keep him close to his chest.

“I can pull any card I want, Rex.”

Fives then ignored Rex when he responded. 

“Can you? I highly doubt that.”

Fives turned his head away from his boyfriend.

“Fives.”

No response.

“Fives!”

Silence.

Rex growled low in his throat, “Don’t ignore me ARC-5555.”

Tup froze. He felt Jesse and Kix stiffen beside him. When a superior officer called you by your number, it was the equivalent of a mother calling her child by their full fucking name. It would always strike fear into the hearts of any trooper, except for a particular local dumbass ARC trooper that didn’t know the meaning of standing down.

Rex didn’t necessarily want to use Fives’ number, but it was the only way to get his attention.

“Oh really, Rex? You’re going to use my number? Now look who’s bitching about things,” Fies swung his hand in the air above his head.

“I’m your Captain, Fives. You’ll do as I say!” Rex was getting pissed.

“Does it look like we’re on duty, Rex? Don’t pull that shit with me, cause I’m your partner and I will beat your ass without question.”

On any other day, that statement would have struck amusement in their brothers, right now it was a threat towards their Captain.

“Can you two please stop?” Tup cut in as he did with Fives and Echo earlier. Rex and Fives both glared at him.

“Don’t even start with me, Tup,” Fives scolded him, remembering the argument between the two of them earlier.

Tup shrunk back into Kix’s chest, not expecting Fives to be so mad at him.

“Shhhh, Tup’ika. Just stay out of it, or Fives and Rex will reflect their anger onto you. And I’m not in the mood to punch them today,” Kix joked lightly, stroking his hand up and down Tup’s side. 

Jesse leaned in to whisper to his husband and little brother, “I’ll punch them for you,  _ cyar’ika. _ ”

“I can make your life a living hell for the next week, Fives! Don’t test me!” Rex yelled.

“Well too bad for you, Rex. Guess you’re going to have to be an ass to me for the next week,” Fives spoke to the ceiling before squinting at Rex.

Rex rolled his eyes, wanting to be done with this pointless conversation. If the ship wasn’t so damn hot then Rex and Fives would not be having this conversation right now, but it’s sad to say, that is not the case.

Fives and Rex continue to argue with each other, blind to the reactions of their brothers. Most of the bystanders were annoyed, wanting to be in peace and not hear constant yelling. Others didn’t know how to feel about it and they just stayed silent, sometimes listening in to the conversation, and other times socializing on their own.

Fives and Rex were now in each other's personal space, close to possibly getting physical, pray to the stars it didn’t come to that.

Tup had had enough. He abruptly stood up and stalked over to the two of them. Tup jumped in between the two and pushed on their chests with either hand, forcing them to take a few steps back. They hadn’t even noticed the teenager stand up.

“I am sick of you two fighting. Can you please just stop?!” Tup shouted.

Fives and Rex looked at each other over Tup’s shoulder before tearing their gaze back to Tup. Rex blinked at him.

“I get that you two are pissed at each other but I’m sick of it. Just try to get along for once and stop arguing.” Tup felt his hand shaking back and forth, and he inconspicuously hid it from his  _ Buirs _ behind his back. 

Fives rolled his eyes and walked away from Rex, sitting heavily on one of the couches. Rex walked to the other side of the room, putting space in between them.

Tup felt his hands shake even more. He wanted to scream in frustration of having  _ another _ anxiety attack.  _ Damn it, are you kidding me? _

Kix’s medical instincts spiked when he noticed the changed demeanor of Torrent’s youngest member. “Tup?”

Tup ignored him and fled the room. He stared at his hands as they shook, holding back a full-blown anxiety attack.  _ Damn it, damn it!  _

Fives stood up to follow him, but Kix stopped him with a glare.

“Sit your  _ shebs _ down, now. You’ve done enough damage. He’ll be fine with Comet.”

Tup aimlessly walked down the hall towards where the Wolfpack was temporarily located but he didn’t know if they were even there.

But Tup needed Comet.  _ Now. _

Luck was on his side. As he rounded the corner the Wolfpack was grouped along the wall. Some were sitting on the left side of the wall and others were on the right side. Tup guessed in his anxiety-filled mind that this particular spot was one of the only cold spots on the ship. 

Arks noticed Tup first and tapped Comet on the shoulder. Comet looked to Arks, cocking an eyebrow. Arks just pointed to the other teenager. 

Comet jumped up without a second thought and met Tup halfway. Tup softly fell into Comet’s chest, winding his shaking arms around his boyfriend's ribs. Comet’s hand found their way on Tup’s shoulders and head.

“Babe?” Comet was actually asking ‘what the hell is wrong’.

“I’m pissed. Fives is pissed. Rex is pissed and obviously not doing good. Everyone is on edge and can’t help it. So they’re snapping at each other. E-Everything is spiraling out of fucking c-control and I can’t k-k-keep up,” Tup rambled, hyperventilating.

“Woah, woah, okay, okay,” Comet was barely able to keep up with the words that shot out of Tup’s mouth. Tup didn’t stop hyperventilating. Comet could feel Tup’s rapid heartbeat through his back. Comet comfortably placed his chin on Tup’s head.

“I hear you, Tup. Are you just freaking out or having an attack?” Comet pulled back to look Tup. Tup’s eyes were cloudy with tears.

“A-attack. I c-can’t breathe,” Tup choked as he tried to breathe deeply.

Comet shook his head. “Yes you can, baby. I can feel your heartbeat right now, Tup’ika. It’s really fast but you  _ are _ breathing. You just have to breathe deeply or you won’t be able to calm down.”

Tup listened to his boyfriend intently, attempting to the best of his ability to follow Comet’s instructions. As soon as Comet deemed him well enough, he continued the conversation, “Tell me what happened, without rambling so I can understand better.”

Tup took a shuddering breath, “I g-got mad at Fives and Echo a-arguing earlier. I s-snapped and said ‘fucking cut it out’. F-Fives got p-pissed at me and told me to w-watch my mouth and to n-not get snippy with him.” He squeezed himself against Comet tighter.

“I ignored him and he was getting m-more mad at me. Rex walked in and got him to back off. Rex took me out o-of the room and I h-had an anxiety attack.”

Comet stopped him momentarily, “Wait, hold on. Is this your second anxiety attack today?”

Tup hid his face from Comet’s view in the other teenager’s neck. Comet wasn’t having it and he pulled Tup away from him. 

“Tup,” Comet started firmly and asked again, “Is this your second anxiety attack?

Tup nodded slowly, afraid of Comet’s reaction. Comet only sighed, deciding to talk to him about it later seeing as he was still breathing incorrectly. “Keep talking to me. What happened to trigger the second attack?”

Tup shuffled his feet. “Rex and Fives g-got into it when Rex got back from the officer’s meeting with the G-Generals. I s-split them up to get them to stop fighting. I-I couldn’t stand it anymore. My hand started shaking and I knew I was about to have an attack,” Tup finished quietly.

“And then you found me,” Comet finished for him, glad he had the full story to work with. 

Tup moved close to him again. Comet let him come close again and he wrapped his arms loosely around Tup’s waist. Comet felt terrible for his boyfriend. Tup and he go through enough shit as it is, being teenagers in the army. If it weren’t for their older brothers, some of the younger clones may not be alive right now; and there is no doubt in Comet’s mind that Jake or maybe even Tup would not be breathing.

Focusing, Comet gently pressed his warm fingers to Tup’s neck, feeling for his pulse. Tup’s heart rate was much more steady than it was before, still a little high, but Comet could live with that. 

“You breathing okay now?” Comet asked in his ear. 

Tup nodded and snuggled closer to him. Comet frowned at the heat coming from his boyfriend’s body. The anxiety probably lifted his temperature. Comet moved Tup, making him sit down on the ground next to Arks. Arks smiled tiredly at the teenager, tired from his shift in the medbay with Helix. Tup smiled back, equally tired from both his attacks. Comet sat beside Tup, pulling him close. Tup went easily, laying his head on the front of Comet’s shoulder.

Wolffe spoke from the other side of the wall next to Ace, who had Blitz in his lap, “Tup, has Rex taken a break in any of the cold spots today?”

Tup’s puppy eyes looked into Wolffe’s white and gold eyes and he shook his head. “I don’t think so. If he did, I wasn't there.”

Wolffe grumbled under his breath in Mando’a, “ _ That osik’ika doesn’t know when to quit. _ ”

Ace and Arks nodded in agreement.

Tup pretended he didn’t understand Wolffe’s usage of Mando’a, acting confused like he had so many times before.

“He’s going to burn out if he doesn’t take a break,” Wolffe stated concernedly.

“I’ll see what I can do,” Tup reassured his older brother but didn’t move from Comet’s side.

* * *

Half an hour later, Tup found himself back in the barracks once again.  _ I’ll see what I can do, my ass.  _ Tup hadn’t made one move yet to try and get Rex to chill out. Instead, the room was enveloped in a heavy blanket of tense silence, and Tup’s gaze fell back and forth between his older brothers in unease. Fives was sitting against the wall. Echo a few feet from him. And Rex was on the couch, eyes closed but not asleep.

“Hey, kid,” Cable’s voice came from Tup’s right.

“Hi,” Tup greeted quietly.

Cable sat next to the teenager, respecting his personal space but still close enough. Talon appeared on Tup’s other side.

“You’re trying to figure out who to talk to first, aren’t you?” Talon questioned softly, dark green hair moving as he cocked his head to the side.

“Yeah. And I don’t know who I’m more scared of talking to,” Tup admitted, a soft smile playing on his lips.

“If I were you, talk to Rex first. Then deal with the stubborn-ass ARC,” Cable put his input in. Tup nodded absentmindedly, leaning momentarily onto Cable in thanks.

Cable pulled Tup up and pushed him in the direction of their Captain. Tup hesitantly walked to Rex and settled for sitting next to him a few inches away.

Rex looked up in surprise as he felt someone sit next to him. His teenager came into view who was biting his lip in fear, gaze stuck on the floor.

“Are you okay? You don’t look okay,” Tup finally asked, remembering what Wolffe had said. And Rex had been looking sick for the past few hours.

Rex nodded without thinking, despite his skin feeling like it was about to burn or peel off. “I’m fine, Tup. Go talk to Fives before you change your mind,” Rex ordered lightly but gave Tup a short side hug. Tup came to a complete stop once he stood up, not moving forward.

Rex gestured with a tilt of his head to Fives, and Tup finally moved. 

Tup’s heart was beating rapidly, like an army of a thousand drums, as he took a seat right in front of his older brother. Fives wouldn’t look at him, keeping his gaze tilted away. Tup felt his heart clench in fear, not wanting Fives to hate him forever.

Tup dropped his head to Fives’ knees, which were bent up. Only after a few seconds did Fives look at Tup. His fingers twirled Tup’s hair lightly, getting Tup to look up at him again. Fives smiled sadly at Tup when he saw his little brother's anxious eyes. Fives cupped the side of Tup’s soft face, not having lost all of its baby fat around his cheeks, after brushing a loose strand of ebony hair behind his ear. The hurt in his baby brother’s big eyes was hurting the older trooper.

Tup stared at his brother, on edge, and scared of what Fives was going to say.

Fives leaned forward, and without warning, he picked Tup up and placed him in his lap. Tup almost yelped at the sudden movement that only the ARCs and Commanders could do because they were the only ones that could possibly lift the teenager with seamless effort. Tup curled close, shaking lightly.

“I’m sorry I got mad at you,  _ ad’ika _ . I didn’t mean to take it out on you,” Fives whispered in his ear.

Tup hugged him tightly. “I’m sorry I always make you mad.”

Fives sighed at Tup being so self-critical, “Tup, you don’t make me mad all the time. The only time I get frustrated with you is when you don’t talk to me or you get snappy. And it’s not always your fault, sometimes it's my short fuse. Do you understand me?”

Tup nodded into his brother’s neck, not wanting to look at him. 

Fives rocked lightly. “Did you have another anxiety attack?”

“Mhm,” Tup mumbled into his neck.

“Was it because of our fight?” Fives was referring to himself and Rex. Fives stroked Tup’s hair, getting the knots out.

“Yes, and there was just too much going on. Got overstimulated, I think,” Tup guessed.

Fives held him close. “Are you okay now? You still seem scared,” Fives pointed out correctly because Tup was nervously wringing his hands and his heartbeat wasn’t as settled as Fives would’ve liked for it to be.

“It’s nothing,  _ Buir _ . Just overthinking,” Tup spoke offhandedly. 

Fives gripped his chin as Tup tried to break eye contact and he said in a warning tone, “Tup.” He prompted more to be said.

“Rex looks sick. And I’m worried,” Tup let the words spill out fast, but Fives understood him. 

Fives took a peek over at his boyfriend and he had to agree with Tup. Rex looked exhausted and just plain sick. Kix was sleeping on Jesse’s shoulder so that’s why he wasn’t bombarding him with concerned medical questions, Fives guessed.

Fives buried his nose in Tup’s soft locks. “Did you talk to him about it?”

“Just brushed me off. Told me to talk to you before I backed out,” Tup muttered in broken sentences. 

Fives carefully moved Tup off his lap and rested him against the wall. As Fives stood up, Tup’s hand gripped his wrist, fear in his eyes. Fives crouched in front of him.

“I’m not going to argue with him, Tup. If we start going at it, I promise I’ll walk away. Deal?”

Tup thought for a moment, eyes flipping from Rex to Fives before he nodded. Fives squeezed his hand before walking to Rex.

Rex glared at him slightly once Fives reached him, giving Fives a big warning to choose his words wisely.

Fives glared right back at him. “Don’t think I’m here to apologize. At least not yet. Tup is worried you’re sick. Are you?”

Rex rolled his eyes. “Fives look around. I’m pretty sure everyone is a little sick because we’ve been sitting next to a damn star for the whole day. I’m fine,” Rex finished in a softer tone than he began in.

“Have you taken a break, like, at all today?” Fives fired off his second question.

“Fives,” Rex growled, “I’m still pissed at you, so don’t push it.  _ Kriff _ off before we go at it again.”

Fives was too annoyed with his boyfriend to have a civil conversation. “For once we agree on something today.”

Fives showed his uncensored anger and annoyance through his body language and expression and sat back down next to Tup. Tup shakily curled around Fives’, soft eyes barely visible from where his hair fell in front of them. His hair that was out of his bun was sticking to his sweaty neck. Tup raked his nails over the top of his hair, moving it away from his face.

Fives watched him and shifted Tup in front of him. He brushed Tup’s hair with his fingers, making it much smoother. “You have a hair tie?”

Tup took the tie off his wrist and placed it in Fives’ hand. The ARC transferred it to his wrist, eyes falling to Rex every few seconds. The older trooper gathered his little brother’s hair up at the back of his head, making sure his hair was smooth and organized. He only twisted Tup’s hair a few times, not wanting to make Tup have a migraine because his hair was too tight at the roots. Fives secured the black hair tie around the bun and then he took his hands off his little brother, but not before he noticed Tup’s body heat.

Fives frowned and touched the back of his hand to Tup’s head. Tup felt a little warm to him. 

“Alright, Tup. Come on, you’re getting a little too hot for comfort,” Fives ordered.

Tup groaned, not wanting to move.

“Nope, up you get. I’m not having you pass out because you overheated. It’s bad enough you had two anxiety attacks,” Fives said as he pulled Tup up from the floor. 

Tup reluctantly got up and followed Fives out the door, with multiple others following them.

* * *

Rex’s body was on fire. He was the only one in the rec room, the others were long gone. He had been suffering too much to do anything but lay on the couch.

Rex groaned audibly, feeling a hot flash go over him.

_ I would rather be anywhere but here. _

Rex wished he had gone with Fives and the others to a cool spot on the ship but he and Fives were both too stubborn to forgive each other just yet.

Rex wasn’t sure if he could pull himself up from the couch, but he tried. He was barely able to stand. Black spots clouded his vision and he fell back onto the couch. Rex groaned low in his throat and fought to stand up again.

Rex, as swiftly as possible, made his way to the ‘fresher. He hoped the cold water would help him not feel like he was on fire.

Rex slowly stripped his blacks off, letting them pile on the floor. He stumbled into the shower, turning it on. He puts it to the coldest setting possible, then he stands under the spray. Water fell onto his burning skin, giving Rex just a second of bliss. Then it was gone in a matter of seconds.

The fact that it was water hitting skin was somewhat helping but it wasn’t doing much. His body was still overheating on the inside. He felt his throat constrict painfully, and his stomach convulsed and cramped.

Rex braced his hands on the wall, knees close to buckling. He whimpered brokenly in pain. He felt bile rise up his throat. Rex clamped his mouth shut, but it hurt him more. 

Rex reluctantly opened his mouth, emptying his stomach onto the tiled floor. Stomach acid and bile were washed away by the water and down the drain. His stomach convulsed again, cramping quite terribly, and he threw up again. 

“ _ Osik _ ,” Rex cursed under his breath after his stomach settled. But now that his stomach wasn’t hurting, his head was pounding within the walls of his skull.

_ Damn me and my stubbornness. _

The water wasn’t doing anything for the Captain, he couldn’t feel the coldness of the water on his skin or the blissful escape from the heat anymore. It only boiled under his skin. So, Rex shakily turned off the water, welcoming the ironically uncomfortable coldness that came with it. 

He stepped out and grabbed a towel to dry himself off. Once he was done, he pulled on his regulation briefs and was about to wrangle his blacks back on but decided against it.

Rex stumbled into the hallway, his migraine causing his vision to spin and dip tenfold. He fumbled to reach for the wall, leaning heavily on it with a resounding slap. He concluded that he was most definitely sick.

The Captain just about almost lost his stomach in the hallway, but he bit back the urge and forced himself forward. After what seemed like a millennium, Rex reached Torrent’s bunking room. He stumbled to his and Fives’ shared bunk and collapsed onto his bed, so grateful that he didn’t choose the top bunk at the beginning of the war.

He curled into a ball, whimpering and whining in pain. He just wanted his boyfriend, and he hoped he would see him soon enough.

Tup tiredly leaned on Fives as they entered the barracks. Fives had an arm around Tup to steady him as the doors opened for them. As Tup covered a hand to his mouth to hide a yawn, Fives looked at him.

“Come on, you’re too tired to stand on your own feet,” Fives took Tup’s hand gently and pulled him into the bunk room. Tup smiled softly and followed.

They entered the bunk room then stopped in the doorway. Rex was on the bed, skin flushed a pink tone. He moaned and whimpered in pain as he shifted anxiously.

If Tup was still tired, boy, he didn’t show it now. “Is he…”

“Sick as fuck and almost naked…yes,” That was all Fives said before they both crossed the room to meet the Captain in great concern. 

Fives hesitantly put a hand on Rex’s shoulder. Rex flinched but leaned into the semi-cold hand. Fives’ thumb traced the length of Rex’s burning collarbone.

“Tup,” he turned to the teenager, “Go get a cloth or rag or something and put it under cold water, then bring it back to me. Got it?”

Tup nodded and retreated to the ‘fresher. Fives kept his attention on Rex the whole time.

“Rex’ika? Can you open your eyes for me?” Fives whispered softly, still stroking his collarbone. 

Rex painfully and slowly peeled his eyes open, glassy and bloodshot eyes meeting Fives’. Fives felt his heart break at the state of his boyfriend.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Fives asked in the same, soft tone.

Rex’s response was a pitiful whimper, and he curled into Fives’ hand. Fives crouched so he was kneeling on the floor. He cupped the older man’s cheek. Fives wanted to tear his hand away because of the heat coming off of his  _ cyare _ . 

“Babe…” Fives really wanted to lecture his boyfriend, but he realized that it would only make things worse.

Tup nudged him on the shoulder, damp cloth in his hand. Fives gave him a weak smile as he took it from his teenager’s hand. Tup knelt alongside Fives, folding his arms on the bunk.

Fives folded the towel so he could hold it better. He lightly dabbed the sweat off of Rex’s head, before moving along to his neck and shoulders. He felt Rex sigh in slight relief at the cold cloth on his body.

“Can you stand?” Fives asked Rex, setting the cloth down.

“Mhm,” Rex was too tired to form any words. 

Fives heaved Rex into a sitting position as carefully as possible. He put an arm around Rex’s waist and used the other to hold Rex’s arm. “Don’t make me do all the work here, or I will drop you,” Fives teased lightly.

Rex chucked, “No promises.”

Tup stayed behind, letting the two of them deal with things. Fives saw a look on Tup’s face, “Tup, while we’re gone, don’t think. About anything.”

“How am I not supposed to think,  _ Buir _ ?” Tup frowned, but he was amused.

Fives gave him a heatless glare. “You know what I mean. Just sit and don’t think.”

Fives led Rex back to the ‘fresher, holding him carefully against his side. He guessed that Rex had a pretty bad fever, judging by the heat coming from the Captain’s body. 

Once they got to their destination, Fives lifted Rex by the hips to make him sit on a cold counter. Fives let Rex cling to him in a lazy hug. Rex dropped his head to Fives’ shoulder, glad his boyfriend wasn’t wearing his top armor. Fives encircled Rex’s torso with his arms, a loose hold that wasn’t tight.

“I’m guessing you already tried to take a shower,” Fives nodded to Rex’s abandoned blacks on the floor.

Rex nodded into the ARC’s neck. “It didn’t do much.”

Fives pulled the blonde trooper from the counter, putting him safely on his feet. “Well, you are trying again with me.” Fives quickly stripped to his briefs and multitasked by keeping his boyfriend on his feet. 

Fives turned the water on, angling the water to hit Rex. He leaned against the shower wall with his sick boyfriend in his arms. Fives shivered as goosebumps covered his body from head to toe. In normal circumstances, Fives would’ve been freezing, but he was also hot, but not as hot as Rex.

Fives closed his eyes, leaning his head back on the tiled wall. His arm was stroking the length of Rex’s wet back, feeling the skin cool down a small degree as he held the Captain under the stream of water.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Fives repeated his previous question, threading in his fingers through Rex’s blonde hair. 

Rex mumbled into his  _ cyare’s  _ neck, “You were pissed…I didn’t want to make you madder by having to take care of me,” Rex sounded so young and sad to Fives, and it hurt him.

“Babe, even if we are fighting, I will still take care of you. Don’t doubt my love for you. I think we’ve been down  _ that _ road before…” Fives sighed, remembering the break in their relationship. He smiled when Rex tightened his strong arms around Fives.

“Let’s get you to bed,” Fives pressed his lips to Rex’s temple, turning off the water.

Rex sluggishly stepped out into the now cold room. Fives dried himself and Rex off. Fives pulled his blacks on but left his armor on the floor, hoping someone else would help him out and grab it later.

“At least put your bottom blacks on,” Fives points at Rex’s body, “you can keep your shirt off,” Fives suggested, holding Rex steady as he pulled his clothes on. 

Rex was exhausted when he was done, and he swayed ever so slightly. Fives moved away from Rex slightly so he could reach for something. Rex watched Fives’ blur of a body move...and it moved with this terrifying trudge that trailed along. Rex blinked with a confused expression on his face, then he jerked forward to grab Fives’ wrist.

“Don’t. D-Don’t move,” Rex warned him, terrified that if he did then he would projectile vomit all over the floor and possibly on Fives too.

“You okay?” Fives asked in concern, studying the odd green hue that blemished across Rex’s pale complexion. Fives nearly missed the headshake, if you could even call it that.

Rex stared at the floor, not even looking up at Fives anymore, lest he wanted to pass out now. Everything was moving ever slowly and it made no sense to Rex on why he suddenly felt sick. His brows furrowed in deep concentration. His hands moved from his sides to his stomach and his breathing picked up a slight bit. Fives knew exactly what was about to happen. He moved Rex to sit down on the closest bench and sat him down carefully so as to not trigger his apparent nausea so early. 

Rex whimpered quietly and leaned forward. His stomach tightened and gave a couple of heaves, clenching and cramping and bubbling until he gurgled deep in his throat. 

“Alright. Alright, Rex-”

Rex clenched his eyes shut, panting hard.

“No no. Just breathe for me. Let it take its course,” Fives comforted him by rubbing his back. 

Rex felt the salty saliva collect under his tongue nauseatingly. The saliva moved out to cover his teeth and tongue, all over his mouth, it tingled. Rex groaned at the sensation—a warning that all beings knew that led to nausea if you were unlucky of course.

“Urgh,” Rex groaned gutturally, coughing slightly. Hot bile shot up his esophagus and stung the back of his throat terribly, causing him to moan in pain. His stomach jerked and squeezed with a vice grip and he gagged sharply. 

Spittle hung from his lips and dripped to the floor.

“It’s okay,” Fives cooed, “it’s okay.”

Rex gagged again with a wet sob, this time being a lot more productive than the last. The last bit of stomach contents and mostly stomach acid clambered out of his mouth and made an appearance on the floor. Rex actually felt nauseous just from seeing that again. He spat into the puddle of beige mush on the floor.  _ Rations.  _

A hand, so comforting and warm touched his squeezing stomach. Rex dry heaved, spine arching backward with the force of the heaves. Each squeeze and clench of his intestines trying to murder him was enough to send him to sleep for three more hours. Fives side hugged him.

“It’s almost over, love. I am here,” Fives reassured him gently, brushing his other hand down Rex’s sweaty back.

Rex dry heaved a couple more times until his stomach muscles ached, his head throbbed, and his eyes burned with tears of pain. Finally, after three minutes, it was over. Rex leaned heavily against Fives’ side and huffed, panting quickly as to alleviate the pain that came with barfing the rest of his guts out.

“Shhhh. I know. Take a moment to breathe for me.” Fives guided him through the aftermath. 

They do decide to breathe with one another, in unison. In and out. Pause. In and out. Pause. Fives waited until Rex’s breaths no longer had that sticky deep rattle like sap clung to his needed breaths deep in his chest cavity.

“Feeling better? No more nausea, right?” Fives asked with a small smile, an attempt to try and defeat the tension and Rex’s pain.

Rex grumbled, “Hmph.”

“Is that a yes?”

“No.”

Fives chuckled, bringing Rex close to give him a loose hug. “Awww. It’s okay, Rex. I think that was it and you can finally rest. Tup is out there waiting for us, and you can lay down next to me and I’ll be right there with you.” Fives grinned, trying to lighten the mood.

Rex slowly looked over at him, golden eyes revealing a bit of light that returned to those special orbs of his.

“There he is,” Fives sighed, placing a kiss on his nose.

“Don’t coddle me.” Rex protested quietly.

“Shhh. Just let the moment be, cyare.”

Rex coughed, “Ew.” He closed his eyes and smiled nonetheless, “thank you.”

Fives nodded. “You’re welcome.”

They sat there for a few minutes longer so then Rex could wait for his stomach to settle down and stop making that god awful gurgling and groaning sounds. Fives looked at the door and asked, “You good to go now?”

“Yeah. Let’s go.” Rex let Fives help him stand up on his two feet and sidestep around the nasty mess that will soon make its way over to the drainage system in the ‘fresher floor. 

Fives took most of Rex’s weight. He slowly led Rex back to bed, scared Rex was going to pass out on him before he got him to lay down. Tup was in his bunk, staring into space. FIves knew what he was doing without even looking at Tup longer than ten seconds.

“Tup, what did I tell you about getting too far into your own head,” Fives scolded, but it was more out of concern than anything.

Tup smiled sheepishly. “Sorry.”

Fives laid Rex on the bed, watching as Rex shifted around for a few minutes. Fives waited until Rex settled before climbing in beside him. Rex moved closer to Fives’ warm body, their roles reserved.

Tup smiled gently at the pair, seeing the love between them. It was a much better sight than seeing them fight and go at each other. 

Fives saw Tup out of the corner of his gold orbs. Fives silently called his child over with a tilt of his head. Without a second thought, Tup got up from his bunk and went to Fives’ and Rex’s. Fives lifted his free arm in an invitation for Tup. Tup climbed in, small enough to fit alongside his much bigger brothers. Tup quickly fell asleep, breaths slowing down as he fell into a deep slumber. 

“He’s much more peaceful when he’s asleep,” Rex’s quiet, tired voice broke the silence.

Fives nodded in agreement. “I think that’s the case for all of us.” Fives squeezed his shoulder comfortingly.

“Are you feeling any better?”

“Not really,” Rex said truthfully. “I still feel like I’m burning alive”.

Fives winced sympathetically. “I’m sorry,  _ cyar’ika _ . Kix might be able to give you some meds when he and Jesse come back.” Rex nodded, curling closer to Fives. 

Twenty long but peaceful minutes passed and Kix and Jesse walked into the room. They both looked tired and ready for sleep, just like the ARC and Captain.

Kix went into hyperdrive, seeing something was wrong.

“He’s sick. He has a fever,” Fives explained simply, not wanting to face the wrath of Torrent’s medic. 

Kix groaned lightly but went to go get the spare medpack in the bunk room. He took a few minutes to find what he was looking for and then he straightened up. Kix sat on the bed next to Rex, taking his arm in a ginger grasp. He slipped the needle into Rex’s arm, administering the medication into his older brother’s bloodstream.

Once Kix pulled the hypo away he flicked Rex on the ear. “Damn it, Rex. How many times do I have to tell you to not hide things?” Kix was mindful of the sleeping teenager in Fives’ arms.

Rex avoided his gaze. “It looks like you might need to say it a couple more times.”

Kix walked away without another word after ruffling Rex’s hair and collapsed into his bunk with Jesse. Tup blinked his eyes open at the commotion, cocking his head to the side on Fives’ ribs.

“Shhhh, go back to sleep, love. We’re right here,” Fives spoke into his ear, feeling Tup relax against him again. Fives grinned lightly as he softly took Tup’s dark hair out, slowly playing with his hair.

“We got lucky with this one,” Rex whispered to him, only for Fives to hear.

“I guess we did.”

Rex’s body loosened for the first time in hours, feeling the exhaustion of the heat and the events of the day hit him at full force. He soon fell asleep in Fives’ arms, knowing his boyfriend would take care of everything else. Right now all he had to do is relax for once.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one took me a little longer to get out but at least this one is all fluff and angst 😂. Be prepared for some heavy angst sooner or later. Thank you all so much for reading and requests are welcome! Who do you guys want to see more of? Ghost? The Wolfpack?
> 
> Kudos to my wonderful beta reader/editor (@AngelWars on Ao3), she dealt with my bullshit migraine today and finished beta reading in one day. She's a saint! 💙
> 
> What do you think?


	36. Chapter 36-Jake

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The youngest of the 327th's origin story.

Bly and his brothers laid around in the barracks on Coruscant, exhausted from the previous mission they just finished with. They all abandoned their armor on the floor near their bunks, about to fall where they stood. 

“That mission was exhausting,” Concept, the battalion’s medic, spoke with distaste from his top bunk. Bailey nodded from the bunk underneath him.

“The longer you complain, the longer it takes for me to fall asleep,” a fiery, red-haired clone mumbled to his brothers, voice laced with tiredness. 

“Impulse, do me a favor? Stop bitching,” his brother on the top bunk, Blulap, snapped at him, equally as tired as his brother but at least he wasn’t ‘bitching’.

“Oh really?” Impulse’s voice was rising by the second.

“Yes-”

Bly stepped in, seeing a young member of his company shifting around, brows furrowed in his sleep. “Both of you cut it out right now, or I will slap the crap out of you. You’re going to wake Jake.”

The arguing immediately stopped at the mention and possibility of waking their baby brother. Everyone turned to look at their youngest, hoping he would calm back down and fall back into a dreamy slumber. 

Jake was soothed back into sleep once the loud talking had stopped, his expression evening out. He curled up a little more, tucking his face closer to his creamy pillow. Bly sighed in relief because Jake fell back into a more peaceful sleep. Then Bly became concerned when he remembered something.

“Concept, did he take his meds today?”

Concept nodded, dragging a hand down his face. “I gave them to him this morning before the fighting started up again. He didn’t take them yesterday though, so I’ll need to give him more in the morning. I really should give him more meds in the next two hours but I don’t want to wake him up.”

Bailey looked up to the bottom of Concept’s bunk even if he couldn’t see him. “Will he be okay through the night?”

“Yeah, he shouldn’t have a seizure. The medication should last until morning,” Concept explained. They fell into silence, watching their younger brother sleep, feeling adoration grow in their hearts for their timid brother.

Bly grinned lightly, a random thought coming to mind. “He’s almost nineteen.”

One of Bly’s heavy gunners, Break, hummed in agreement, “And he’s been with us for about two years as well.”

It was hard to believe that Jake had been with them for only two years. In war, time flies by fast. Jake had come to them timid as hell and barely spoke a single word. He was seventeen and very young compared to his older brothers. 

All of them vividly remember the scared teenager hiding behind Bly. They had all been shocked into silence when they looked at Jake for the first time. His height difference had shocked them because that meant he was a much younger brother than the norm. But what shocked them the most was when they saw his bright, baby blue eyes full of fear of meeting a new squad. 

Jake had been so quiet in the beginning, so much so his brothers thought he had been mute.

Break had asked Jake how old he is, terrified of his answer. Jake had responded quietly with “seventeen.”

Before Jake, Bailey had been the youngest, but not by much. Bailey was only a few months younger than Concept, but Jake was younger by  _ years.  _ And his young age did not help the teenager at all within the GAR.

  
  


_ A little less than 2 years ago _

  
  


Bly walked into his barracks with Jake behind him. Jake fidgeted lightly, keeping his eyes glued on the floor, worried his brother was angry with him. 

Bly had just interrupted a one-way conversation between him and a very heated Admiral. Jake hadn’t done anything wrong, but Adrian Bates didn’t seem to give a damn. If Bly hadn’t interrupted them, Jake didn’t even plan on mentioning the incident.

Jake had only been with his brothers for a few months and he didn’t want them to send him away because they were mad at him. He had been battling that exact feeling since the very first day he met his Alpha Company.

As they entered the rec room, Jake felt the eyes of his brothers on him, even a bit of the main battalion troopers. 

“Jake,” Bly whispered in his ear. Jake nodded, indicating he heard him, but he didn’t look in his brother's direction. 

“I’m not mad at  _ you _ , kid. I promise that. Go to the bunk room,” Bly ordered, but not enforcing it, keeping his voice light.

Jake didn’t give any response, not even a nod, and headed for his bunk in the other room. Concept was on edge, watching his younger brother leave the room with a kicked puppy look on his face. Concept noticed the concerned looks on the faces of the others, but the more brash clones, like; Impulse, and Blulap were less worried.

“What happened?” Bailey asked, cocking his head to the side.

Bly looked pissed. “The Admiral was trying to get Jake reconditioned.  _ Again _ .”

“What is his problem?” Break rolled his eyes.

Bly tossed his hands to the side, taking a seat beside Bailey. “My guess is it’s because of Jake’s eyes.”

It was Impulse’s turn to roll his golden-brown eyes. “That is ridiculous. It’s not like he’s hurting anyone.”

“It’s Adrian Bates. I don’t know what else to expect from the man,” Bly growled, sick of the Admiral. And it wasn’t just Jake that the Admiral hated; he hated everyone, even the General, but if he voiced his distaste for the General in front of her, the clones would defend her. 

With that said, Bly couldn’t deny the fact that even if Admiral Bates hated all of them, he had a vendetta for Bly’s youngest trooper.

“Why did he look like a puppy that got kicked?” Impulse questioned.

Bly rubbed his eyes, showing his distaste for the situation. “He thinks I’m mad at  _ him. _ I kinda went off on the Admiral and I think I scared him.”

Bailey looked a little sad. “He still doesn’t trust us, does he?”

Concept puts a comforting hand on his shoulder. “We have to give him some time and space to adjust. He’s young. The only squad he had been with was his batchmates, and they were his age. We are older than him, so he probably feels less comfortable with us than kids his age.” Being the medic he was, Concept was automatically soothing and knew how to make his sentences sound as comforting as he was.

“Still, he doesn’t  _ trust us _ . What are we supposed to do when he gets hurt and doesn’t tell us? It’s not like we can force him to tell us because he wouldn’t come to us” Bailey pointed out. His biggest concern was if Jake got hurt and didn’t tell them that the damage done could be lasting.

“We can’t force him to trust us. It doesn’t work like that,” Bly told his younger brother, even if he hated to admit it.

“Worrying about it right now won’t do anything. We might as well get some sleep while we still can,” Impulse grumbled, not enjoying the touchy-feely conversation. He was too tired to get into stuff and talk about their feelings. If he had been less grouchy and tired, he would’ve let the conversation go on further, but that wasn’t the case.

Impulse briskly walked to the bunk room, ready to welcome sleep. He knew the others would follow eventually.  _ What am I supposed to do? Wait for them? I think the hell not. _

Impulse paused as Jake came into view once he stepped into the room. The teenager was staring at the bunk above him but he was most definitely staring into space. Jake also seems to not be aware of Impulse having walked into the room at all. 

“Jake,” Impulse called, getting freaked out by the way Jake’s eyes were laser-focused on the top bunk.

Jake’s eyes looked like they were trying to tear away from their focus on the bunk but they were stuck in place. 

Impulse called louder and took a few steps closer, “Jake. Snap out of it kid.”

Jake didn’t acknowledge his older brother.

“Jake!” Impulse shook his brother's shoulder, turning Jake partly towards him. Jake’s blue eyes cleared, it was like the fog had seeped away. Jake tried to speak but his vocal cords wouldn’t work. 

Impulse dropped to one knee, feeling concerned and ready to yell for Concept. “What the hell was that, kid?” He hated how mushy his heart was feeling, and he felt very out of his element.

Jake opened his jaw to try and speak again but he could not form a sentence. He shakily shrugged. 

Impulse heard the door slide open and he looked over his shoulder. The others’ gaze fell on their brash brother crouched in front of their shaken youngest brother.

“What’s wrong?” Bailey asked, reading his brother's expressions.

“You tell me,” Impulse replied, “the kid spaced out and wouldn't answer me until I shook him. And now he won’t say what's wrong.”

Bly turned to Jake. “What happened, Jake?”

Jake shrugged again and spoke in a quiet voice, “I-I don’t know. I j-just started staring at the ceiling and I couldn’t look away. But I-I couldn’t really see.”

Concept moved next to Impulse. “What do you mean? Did you blackout?”

Jake shook his head. “N-no. I could see but I couldn’t see?” He was confusing himself and he didn’t like it. Jake curled up more and dropped his head on his knees.

Concept stroked the length of Jake’s left arm, “Come on, Jake. You have to tell me what you mean so I can help you.” He shifted to coax Jake’s head up to meet eyes with him. Eventually, blues orbs met golden orbs.

“Talk to me,” Concept ordered with more force than before but in a quieter tone. It was always so hard to get Jake to talk to them or let them help. All Concept wanted to do was help him, but it was harder when their younger brother didn’t trust them.

Jake only kept his eyes on Concept, crushed blue eyes staring into Concept’s normal ones. “A-at first I c-could see, b-but then everything…went blurry and flashy? I-I’m sorry, I-I don’t know,” Jake tore his gaze away.

Concept nodded. “So your blurry vision went in and out. Are you saying that your vision went in and out of focus?”

Jake shook his head.

“Your vision went in and out completely? Like you would start to blackout but then you didn’t?” Concept tried again.

Jake nodded.

Concept sat next to Jake but respected his personal space. “Did you hit your head at all today? Or did you do anything to make you possibly lose consciousness?”

Jake jerkily shook his head, pulling his legs tighter to his chest. “No.”

Concept’s medical and older brother instincts were yelling at him to take Jake to the medbay and give him a full examination to double-check that nothing was wrong because this should not be happening to Jake. A normal, healthy teenager should not be having blackouts unless there was a physical injury or other things that were going on that medics would not be alerted of, like; sleep deprivation or stress. Although, Concept had to take into consideration that they were soldiers; sleep deprivation was the norm and stress was a soldier’s best friend.

“Jake, I’m going to give you two choices,” the medic gave him a few seconds to look up. “I can take you to the medbay and give you a few scans, or we can forget about it and move on. It’s your call, little one.”

Jake thought for a moment. He didn’t want to disappoint his older brothers by saying he didn’t want to go, but he really didn’t want to go. He didn’t want to be the center of attention. Jake slowly shook his head, anticipating to be reprimanded.

A gentle hand tangled in his hair, pulling gently and stroking his dark curls. Jake looked up in shock.

Concept’s heart broke as his little brother looked up, eyes full of shock and apprehensiveness. “Don’t look at me like that, kid. I would never force you to do something you didn’t want to.”

Jake leaned into Concept, not giving him the chance to object to his sudden movements. Concept quickly wrapped his arms around his brother’s frame so he wouldn’t fall off the edge of the bed. Concept held Jake for a few minutes before cradling him; so he could lay Jake down. Jake looked up at him with big, blue eyes, waiting for Concept to say something. The medic softly brushed a stray lock of hair behind Jake’s ear.

“Try to sleep,  _ vod’ika _ .” Concept whispered softly.

Jake’s heart throbbed at the endearing name and shifted onto his side, eyes falling close. Only when Jake fell asleep did Concept move away and down a bunk climbing up the ladder to reach his bed. Concept laid down on his stomach so he could glance at Jake through the rails of the headboard. The medic noticed that Bly was looking at Jake from the doorway. Concept knew his Commander would keep an eye on their little brother. He was just too tired to do it himself.

* * *

Jake grappled another 327th trooper, Kal, who was trying to save himself from getting pinned down. Jake rolled on the mat with Kal and felt his brother's hands try to get a grip on his body. Jake quickly got up, to the best of his ability, with the other trooper following him. Jake delivered a swift kick to the side of Kal’s ribs, making him curl up. Kal grabbed Jake’s left arm and he twisted it so it stayed behind his back with Kal holding it in place. Jake dropped and rolled, effectively knocking his brother off of him. Kal hit the floor, not able to brace himself. 

Jake put all his body weight on Kal, locking his arms behind his back. Kal struggled, but he couldn’t find a way to escape Jake’s hold.

“Damn it.” Kal cursed, going lax, insinuating he tapped out.

Jake carefully got off of his brother and let him stand up. When Kal fully stood up, he smiled brightly at Jake. “Nice job.” 

With that, both of them went their separate ways. Jake quickly ducked back off to the side to where his older brothers are, not wanting to be in the center of the room anymore. Bailey let him partially hide behind his shoulder. Jake didn’t latch onto Bailey, not wanting his brothers to think he was behaving too young. It was the norm for Jake; when he would get off the mat he would go back to his brothers and almost disappear.

“-Super clingy.” 

Jake strained his ears to hear a conversation he overheard, feeling he knew who his brothers were talking about.

“Jake’s a kid though, he should be allowed to have more attention,” A different brother defended the teenager.

Jake was very tempted to press closer to Bailey, who wasn’t looking at him, but then he would be proving his brothers right.

“It doesn’t matter. We have no use for a kid that can’t go without some type of affection for five minutes. What do you think is going to happen on the battlefield?” his brother’s tone sounded bored.

“I think you’re just being an asshole,” another clone spoke. 

“He’s a defect; he shouldn’t have been let off Kamino in the first place. He shouldn’t get the affection for being defective, and the Alpha Company shouldn’t approve of it.”

Jake felt his heart clench and twist. Did his brothers actually think he should be decommissioned?

“Now you’re just sounding like the Kaminoans.”

Jake tuned out the conversation. He shut his eyes out of shame, only so his brothers didn't have to see them. He dropped his head on Bailey’s shoulder. Bailey was pulled from his musing when he felt someone place their head on his shoulder. Bailey looked at Jake and tsked lightly. He could tell just by his brother’s body posture that something had upset him. Bailey tugged him closer.

“You see what I mean?! They are enabling him!”

Bailey’s brain did a few backflips to try and understand the sentence that flew out of his brother’s mouth. It took a few seconds, but it clicked. Bailey glared at his brother, who he honestly wanted to punch. The trooper saw Bailey glaring and he responded, “You know I’m right.”

Bailey shielded Jake even more. “I know you need to shut the fuck up Val before I knock your teeth out.” Bailey was nice until someone insulted his baby brother.

The insensitive trooper, Val, rolled his eyes,.“Sooner or later you’re going to get sick of the brat and ship him off somewhere else. That’s what always happens with clingy, defective teenagers.”

Jake let out a quiet whimper that only Bailey could hear. Bailey felt Jake curl impossibly closer.

“He is not clingy,” Bailey protested.

The trooper gestured to the sad teenager.“Then what the hell is he doing right now? Like I said. Clingy.” 

Bly saw the confrontation and stepped forward. “Shut the kriff up right now, or I’ll make you spar with me and you  _ will _ lose.”

Val quickly quieted down but glared at his Commander.

Bly crossed his arms, eyebrow hitching up. “Problem, trooper?”

“No sir,” The clone mumbled and turned away.

Jake didn’t uncurl from Bailey’s shoulder, nuzzling closer. Under normal circumstances, Jake wouldn’t be as cuddly, but he was upset. He was slowly opening up to his Alpha Company. He still didn’t fully trust them but Bailey was offering Jake comfort and the teenager was going to take it.

Bly crouched in front of Jake. Jake peeked at his Commander; one pair of blue eyes meet Bly’s golden brown eyes.

“Don’t listen to a word he just said, Jake. We are  _ not _ going to send you away. You are  _ not _ defective,” Bly firmly but reassuringly stated.

Jake shook his head. “I  _ am _ defective, Bly-”

Bly gave him a pointed look, making Jake pause.“Jake. Just because you have blue eyes doesn’t mean you deserve to be killed by horrible scientists.”

Jake looked close to crying, feeling so worthless that his flesh and blood wanted him dead. His batchmates didn’t help his poor self-esteem issues during training, and that set him up for failure in the future, causing him to be shy and wanting to be in the background at all costs.

Bly sat on the floor. “My batchmates and I have been through this before with Rex, Jake. So many of the other squads thought he didn’t deserve to be in officer training because he had naturally blonde hair.” Even if Jake tore his gaze away, Bly knew his little brother was still listening to him.

“We had to convince him that even if other brothers gave him shit, we would still love him, always. And we will always love you, Jake,” Bly continues, “you’ll have to learn to accept the fact that you have blue eyes and that it may bring attention to you, or it may be the reason you are in tough situations, but we will always be there for you through all of them. You hear me?”

The young clone nodded into Bailey’s shoulder, feeling his brother shift around a little bit. Bailey wrapped his arms loosely around Jake, placing his cheek on the top of Jake’s head. Bailey squeezed him tight before helping Jake stand up.

“Come on, we’re almost done anyway,” Bailey prompted in his ear. Bailey pulled on Jake’s hand but didn’t take it, knowing it would make Jake uncomfortable.

Bly kept Bailey back for a few seconds, grabbing his bicep gently while Jake stood off to the side. “You take him. I’ll stay here until we’re done.”

Bailey nodded and placed a hand on Jake’s shoulder blades. Jake swiftly left the room, leaving no room for conversation. Bailey kept up, knowing Jake just wanted to go to the barracks.

They walked silently through the halls, shoulder to shoulder. Bailey didn’t blame Jake for not wanting to talk. He highly doubted that this incident was the first Jake had ever experienced. 

Meanwhile, Jake was trying to ignore the oddly bright lights in the ceiling. The lights were obnoxiously bright and Jake felt like they were almost flashing every few seconds. The lights in the barracks had never been that bright before. The teenager’s fingers twitched at his side. Just short spasms, but noticeable. Bailey continued to walk but he heard Jake’s footsteps slow to a full stop. The other trooper turned back around.

Jake had stopped in the middle of the hallway, staring at the floor.

“Jake?” Bailey called in confusion.

Jake’s hand twitched, the only part of his body that was moving beside his chest.

“Jake,” Bailey called louder.

The teenager still didn’t respond.

Bailey put a hand on his shoulder, his heartbeat pounding in fear within his chest. Jake did not indicate that he knew Bailey’s hand was even on his shoulder. Bailey shook him once lightly with a tight grip in case Jake’s knees buckled or he collapsed. “Kiddo, what’s wrong?” Bailey asked, noticing soon after that Jake wasn’t responding. 

“Shit.” He’s not sure what this was. “Jake, please answer me,” Bailey tried again. 

Jake didn’t respond. His gaze remained frozen on the floor below his feet. Then, suddenly, he slowly sunk to the floor. Bailey had to hold him tightly in his grip and ease him down to the floor.

“Come on, Jake. I’m right here kid. Wake up Jake,” Bailey whispered repeatedly in his ear, giving him some space but holding his hand.

Jake jerked a little bit. His lidded eyes snapped open, but to Bailey’s extreme displeasure, Jake started crying softly.

“Oh, little one. Shhhhh, shhhhh,” Bailey coos, pulling Jake up into his arms. Jake was situated in between Bailey’s legs, and he was placed in a way so he was straddling his waist, face buried in Bailey’s collarbone. Bailey realized they were in a horribly suggestive position out in the middle of the hallway where an Admiral or the General could walk by in an instant. 

“Jake,” the older trooper prompted, “I know you don’t want to move and that you’re upset, but we have to get back to the barracks. Okay?”

Jake sniffled and nodded, shakily standing up with the help of his brother. Bailey supported him the whole way back to the barracks with none of their brothers crossing their paths. Bailey held Jake with one arm and put the code in, opening the door. Once they were in the confines of their room, Jake threw himself at Bailey. The older trooper took a few steps back to balance them and looked down at Jake. 

Jake was shaking from the quiet sobs that racked his body. His shaky hands wrapped around Bailey’s torso and he tucked his face into the junction of Bailey’s shoulder, tears dripping onto his brother's skin.

Bailey wanted to hide Jake away from the world. “Shhhhh, shhhhh. I know that was scary, I know little one.” Bailey was calm on the outside, being Jake’s rock for the time being. On the inside, his heart and stomach were twisting and clenching and pulling. 

What happened in the hallway was not normal at all and it proved that something was wrong with Jake. Bailey was terrified of what was happening to Jake; whether it was physical or psychological, it wasn’t good. Jake might get sent away for it.

Bailey rocked from side to side, his hand sliding up to Jake’s nape. 

Bailey gradually moved both of them to the couch. As he sat down on the closest couch, Jake climbed in Bailey’s lap, recreating the same position they were in in the hallway.

“Calm down, Jake. Shhhhhh, sh, sh. It’s okay, it’s okay.”

Even with Bailey’s soft words, Jake couldn’t calm down enough to stop crying. He was too upset to breathe deeply and get a grip on himself. Jake clung to Bailey, not willing to let go.

Bailey stroked his soft hair, fingers passing through lightly. Just as he was about to reach for his comm, his brothers walked into the room.

Bly, Concept, Break, Impulse, and Blulap were softly talking to one another, but when they saw Jake crying and in Bailey’s arms, their talking ceased.

Concept stepped forward first, quickly making his way to his crying brother. Bly came over as well, being Jake’s oldest brother in the battalion, he was rightfully concerned.

Concept sat next to Bailey on the cushions. “What happened?” The medic got straight to the point, needing to know.

“We were walking back to the barracks when he started to twitch. I didn’t see a problem with it so I just let it go. But then he just stopped in the middle of the hallway, staring at the floor. He was unresponsive; he just stood there and slowly dropped to his knees while I was holding him. I didn’t know what to do,” Bailey explained as his hand traveled down Jake’s spine.

Concept put a warm hand on Jake’s leg, but he kept his attention on Bailey. “Did you shake him at all?”

Bailey nodded slightly. “Only once, but I didn’t think it was a good idea, so I didn’t do it again.”

Concept gave a comforting squeeze to Bailey’s shoulder, seeing how worried the younger trooper was. “You did good, Bailey. Keeping Jake calm and responsive, or at least semi-conscious is the first step to something like this. It’s okay.” Bailey nodded numbly, squeezing Jake when the teenager let out a sob. Bailey hushed him quietly, feeling his brother’s shakes increase. 

“Jake, can you tell me what happened?” the medic asked gently.

Through his sobs, Jake answered, “I-I d-don’t k-know what h-happened. T-The lights j-just got really b-bright and then e-everything l-looked fuzzy and hazy. I c-couldn’t move and I-I just s-stared into space.”

Concept and Bly met eyes and an understanding passed through them. Concept turned back to the other three troopers. “Impulse, can you carry him to the bunkroom? I don’t want him walking.”

The heavy-gunner squatted down to Jake’s level. “I’m going to pick you up, kid. Okay?”

Impulse scooped Jake up with no difficulty what-so-ever. Jake didn’t have to do anything except stay relatively still. His head found a comfortable place on Impulse's shoulder. Impulse walked slowly into the bunk room, being extremely careful. The last thing he wanted was to cause Jake more distress. The larger trooper sat on his bunk, pulling Jake close. It was going against every fiber in his being to hug another trooper, but his little brother was the one who was upset.

Jake nuzzled closer, tears drifting down at a slow pace. His thumb lightly traced the lightning bolt tattoo on Impulse’s forearm. The tattoo was mirrored on the other arm which was holding Jake close to his chest.

Impulse cocked his head curiously as the teenager slowly traced the tattoo. He didn’t mind, he honestly found it kind of cute in a way, but then he cursed himself for thinking that.  _ Damn it. I’m going soft. _

Jake’s thumb didn’t stop its movement as he laid better on top of Impulse. The heavy-gunner shifted so he was still sitting but was partly laying down with Jake laying on the left side of his chest.

Jake didn’t object, still focusing on the thin tattoo that was permanent in his brother’s skin.

The blunt trooper’s gaze softened at the sight of his little brother trusting him enough to hold him like this. Impulse didn’t necessarily like teenagers because most of them were cocky and had an invincible complex. But this was  _ his _ teenager. He and his battalion’s teenager. 

Impulse remembered that he didn’t think Jake would last five minutes with them. He was very young and he didn’t have the same amount of experience as them. The one thing that Impulse hoped wouldn’t be Jake’s undoing was his own eyes. Eye color didn’t matter in war. The same went for hair color, height, size, tattoos; the list went on and on. The Separatists wouldn’t care if the teenager had blue eyes, they would still kill him without a second thought. So why should the Kaminoans and the Admirals care if they were slightly different from Jango? 

Impulse could admit he had been wrong about Jake. The teenager was quiet, but he was smart, and he knew right from wrong. He may be slightly leaner than his brothers because of his age, but that didn’t mean he couldn't fight.

Jake abruptly pulled back momentarily, eyes not meeting the red-haired clone’s eyes.

Impulse tilted his head the other way in an attempt to get Jake to look at him. Impulse saw tears streaming down his face again. 

“Why are you upset, little one?” Impulse asked lightly.

Jake shrugged.

“Come on, Jake. You have to tell us these things so we can help you,” Impulse pushed forward, trying to get Jake to trust him. Jake still didn’t tell them things. He kept them bottled up in fear of his brothers reprimanding him.

“I a-always worry all of you. And you shouldn't h-have to worry. I constantly get in trouble with the Admirals, and some of the others want me dead. I just cause too many problems. You should just leave me alone so you can live without a worthless teenager holding you back.” Jake started to move away but Impulse put him in a body lock.

“Jake,” Impulse growled in his ear, “you are  _ not _ worthless. How can you not see that we love you? Stop doubting yourself. You don’t cause any problems. If you have a problem, we will help you in an instant.”

Jake struggled in his arms, doing his best to escape his brother’s grip. The constant moving only encouraged Impulse to tighten his arms more, locking them around Jake. There was no way Jake could get out of his arms now. Impulse was easily stronger than his younger brother thanks to the heavy machinery he had to use during battles, and Jake didn’t have as much training as himImpulse wouldn’t let Jake struggle anyways, teaching him a small lesson to not fight him. “Jake, stop, stop. Shhhhh,” Impulse muttered into his ear, being soft for what felt like the first time in his life.

Jake’s struggling came to a stop, tears rolling off his chin. Impulse held Jake more comfortably, still having a firm grip on his brother. Impulse didn’t exactly know what to do. He usually left the comforting of younger brothers to the medics and nicer clones like Concept and Bailey. Right now, however, he mentally said ‘fuck it’ and cradled Jake close to his chest.

“You’re not worthless, Jake,” Impulse whispered in a light tone, hands making circles on the cry teenager’s back.

Jake leaned into Impulse’s warm chest, needing physical comfort from his brother. Impulse gave it to him and he brushed Jake’s hair away from his eyes. Impulse continued to hold his baby brother, feeling more comfortable with holding the crying boy as time went on.

Jake calmed down after five more minutes of crying, not moving away from his older brother, but moving closer instead.

Impulse let him shuffle around a little bit before settling down. Jake tucked his head under his chin and sighed quietly. His brother encircled him, laying down fully.

“Love you…” Jake muttered shyly into his chest.

Impulse froze, never hearing those words before. Jake waited through the agonizing silence until a hand drifted to his head.

“Love you too.”

* * *

Jake sat crossed-legged on the couch, resting his chin on his hands, which were folded. His brothers surrounded him, some on the floor, others on different seats, and they were all just spread out amongst themselves. There were only about twelve or thirteen troopers, the rest are off on their own somewhere in the Coruscant barracks. 

Jake was partially leaning on his Commander’s shoulder. He had gotten better at showing and receiving affection. Sometimes a few brothers would point out what they saw, like; Jake being ‘clingy’ or ‘seeking attention,’ but Jake tried to ignore his brother’s jabs.

Bly’s attention was drawn when something flashing caught his eye. He turned his head a small bit, seeing one of his ammunition experts, Bunker, scowling at a datapad that was flashing white, blue, and red in that pattern. Bunker noticed his Commander’s confused but amused expression.

“The damn thing's broken. It keeps flashing after  _ this _ one dropped it,” Bunker pointed to his  _ riduur _ next to him.

His husband rolled his eyes. “Whatever, Bunk’.”

Bly snickered and watched as the flashing got brighter and more erratic. 

Jake saw the flashing out of the corner of his eye, drawing his attention to it. Jake didn’t even have to look directly at the source and it was bothering him. 

Jake made the mistake of redirecting his line of sight to the flashing offender, the bright lights hard to resist. Jake couldn’t even stare at Bunker’s datapad before his vision started to get…fuzzy.

His heart rate jumped erratically. Fear took over his entire body in the form of stillness, from his stiffened up limbs to his widened eyes. The room was starting to blur together with the colors, and the lines of the room blurred together. Jake’s right hand shot out to Bly’s forearm for stability with a knuckle-white grip on his brother’s muscular arm.

The Commander swiveled his head to look at his baby brother, seeing Jake gripping his head with his other hand. Bly placed a warm hand on Jake’s back, leaning closer.“Jake, what’s wrong?”

Jake whined softly, not letting go of Bly’s arm. Bly softly shushed him, thumb stroking the back of Jake’s neck. “Talk to me, Jake.”

“Don’t feel good,” Jake whispered, vision violently blurring in and out. His body felt stiff as hell like he didn’t have control over his own body. Bly gripped Jake’s bicep, lifting him up. He started to lead him over to the bunk room when Jake’s knees buckled, sending him to the floor in a twitching heap. “Concept!” Bly immediately yelled, kneeling down next to Jake. The only limbs shaking, at the moment, were Jake’s arms. A few seconds passed, the youngest started to move around even more; small arm twitches becoming violent shakes, and the wave of tremors moved down to his entire torso.

Concept perked up, frowning when his Commander called his name. After taking one look at Jake on the floor, he ran over immediately and sat down on Jake’s other side. Concept’s hands briefly hovered over Jake's shaking body, thinking first before acting. “What’s happening to him?” Bailey asked from the couch. Break pulled Bailey to his chest.

Concept didn’t look at his brothers when he answered calmly, “He’s having a seizure.”

The sentence hit them like a ton of bricks. It was very rare for any brother to have seizures.

Concept continued, “We can’t touch him until he stops seizing. If we touch him or hold him down we might hurt him.”

Jake’s entire body was violently shaking now. His elbows cracked against the floor underneath him. His legs spazzed out of control, jerking up and down roughly. Next, Jake let out this horrid gagging and crying hybrid sound, scaring everyone. The sound brought forth one question that crossed everyone’s minds. 

Impulse just beat everyone to ask it, “He’s choking. What do we do?” 

Concept thought for a split second. “Help me turn him on his side.”

Bly, careful as fuck to not make things worse, cradled Jake’s head as his medic slowly turned the seizing teenager’s torso and legs. Concept observed Jake and Bly, cocking his head to the side for a split second.

“Put his head in your lap. I would much rather have him hit something organic than him hitting the hard floor. Just don’t try and pin him down, that can cause spinal damage,” the medic directed Bly to place Jake’s head a certain way before backing away slightly.

“ _ You’re okay, Jake. Just wake up,”  _ Bly whispered Mando’a into the teenager’s ear, even though Jake didn’t fluently understand Mando’a. Bly gently ran his blunt nails through Jake’s dark raven curls. If he couldn’t hold Jake, he would at least give him some comfort.

Concept was watching the time tick by; Jake had been seizing for almost a minute and a half and showed very little signs of stopping. If the seizure reached the five-minute mark, Concept would have to take Jake to the medbay where more help was available. 

“Come on Jake. Come on,” Concept murmured under his breath. 

As soon as Concept finished his sentence, Jake’s twitches gradually slowed down and his eyes rolled back in place; baby blue orbs only slightly visible.

Jake’s arms and legs still twitched; legs and arms spazzing on the floor. 

“Come on, Jake. We’re right here,” Bly whispered in his ear, thumb stroking the teenager's shoulder. 

Jake’s body was still seizing but it was slowly coming to a stop. Bly didn’t want to move an inch in fear that he would somehow cause Jake to start seizing again or maybe even cause pain. Jake was twitching lightly, mostly just his hands and fingers.

Bly let out a sigh of relief when Jake’s body went lax against him, now just his fingers twitching. Bly ran his fingers through Jake’s dark hair; his touch feather-light.

Jake’s eyes opened his eyes slightly. His eyes were almost glass-like. His eyelids were heavy, showing that Jake was exhausted after the seizure. He was conscious, but he seemed a little out of it. 

His fingers twitched once or twice every twenty seconds, the only trace of the seizure left. It looked like Jake was trying to move a small bit but his muscles were too tight and wouldn’t let him move.

Bly stayed silent, not willing to disturb his younger brother. Concept had the same tactic as him; staying mute until Jake got a grip.

The tense silence was broken by Jake breathing heavily, becoming more aware of his surroundings.

Jake gasped for breath, sitting up, shaking in fear. He curled into a ball and cried into his knees.

Bly scooted forward, hand hovering before softly touching Jake’s shoulder. Jake jumped, then leaned into Bly’s frame, placing his head over his Commander’s steady heartbeat.

“Easy,  _ udesii, udesii. _ I’m right here. You’re okay,” Bly told him calmly, holding him close.

Jake shakily curled into Bly’s arms, still crying. That had been a terrifying experience for him. The out-of-body feeling was horrible.

“Jake, calm down, calm down. Try to breathe, kid,” Concept ordered in a light tone grabbing Jake’s trembling hand.

Jake took a few deep breaths, with the help of Bly’s own deep breathing. He still stayed against Bly’s chest, feeling his older brother talk softly to the medic next to him. He knew his older brother would protect him so he allowed himself to relax a small bit.

“Jake,” Concept looked at the teenager, already guessing the answer to his question that he hadn’t even asked yet. “Do you know what caused you to have the seizure?”

Jake nodded. He had been wondering what caused it when he ‘woke up,’ and being the smart teenager he was, he could take an educated guess. “I think it was the light flashing… everything went fuzzy after I looked at it for a few seconds.”

Concept and Bly shot each other a look. They had discussed the matter two weeks ago after Jake had his minor breakdown just after training. They had the same thoughts as the teenager.

“Jake…you’re going to have to trust me on this,” Concept started slowly.

Jake stared at him with blown eyes, moving closer to Bly, trying to hide in his frame. “I don’t like that statement,” Jake whimpered.

Concept ran a soothing hand over his back. “Shhhh, I know. But this could be bad, Jake. Please, let me take you to the medbay so I can check you over.”

Jake buried himself further into Bly’s chest. He thought for a minute before nodding. Concept smiled lightly and stood up, gesturing for Jake to do the same. Bly helped him stand on his own two feet, bracing him for a few seconds, then letting go.

The Commander was about to walk away but Jake gripped his hand tight. Bly looked back again, cocking an eyebrow. Jake looked at him imploringly, begging him to come along.

Bly sighed fondly and followed Jake as he and Concept walked out the door. Bly stayed shoulder-to-shoulder with his brother, noticing Jake fidgeting nervously. He laced his fingers with one of Jake’s hands.

He smiled reassuringly. “Take it easy, Jake. Everything will be okay, I promise.”

Jake didn’t seem to believe his older brother, shooting him a questionable glance.

Bly chuckled, “I wouldn’t lie to you. Concept is just being protective. Am I right, Concept?”

The medic glared at him.

The tests took about twenty minutes. There was a multitude of names and terms Jake couldn’t stand to remember, he was too scared because of the results.

Bly stayed next to him the whole time, not leaving him for a second. He could sense his brother’s fear; it didn't take a Jedi to see that.

Jake was curled under the covers, eyes barely visible, fiddling with the blankets. Bly sighed lightly, feeling bad that his little brother was so scared. The Commander pulled the covers back a small bit, prompting a sound of protest from Jake.

Jake reluctantly made eye contact, still.

Bly asked softly, mindful of his other brothers in the medbay, “What is your worst-case scenario, Jake?”

Jake shrugged, but still answered in his usual quiet voice, “That I have something that can’t be treated and you have to send me back to Kamino.”

Bly lifted his chin with two of his fingers. “Kid, do you honestly think I would do that, or would ever let you get sent back to Kamino?”

Jake shook his head immediately. “No, not you. But I can see the Admiral try to send me back-”

Bly hushed him, “The General and I would never let that happen.”

Jake silently took his hand,.“I know, Bly. But you won’t always be there to save me…”

Bly squeezed his hand reassuringly. “That won’t happen for a long time. I ain’t going anywhere.”

Jake fiddled with his Commander’s hand, waiting for Concept to come back. When he did, he had a grim expression. “Bly, can I talk to you for a second?”

Bly recognized his medic’s tone of voice. This was going to be important. Bly dislodged Jake’s hand gently, standing up. 

Jake went silent, not liking how his brother pulled their older brother to the side. His brain couldn’t stop moving and turning. The gears in his head were working overtime.

Concept came back with Bly next to him a few minutes later. The medic sat on one side of the bed while Bly took the other.

“Jake?” Concept started lightly.

Jake looked at him, body position stiff.

“What I am about to tell you doesn't mean you are defected or broken, do you understand me?”

Jake nodded softly.

Concept sighed, not knowing how to break it to his brother lightly. “Jake… y-you have epilepsy...”

Jake stared blankly at Concept for a few seconds before letting his head fall backward on the pillow with an audible ‘thump’.  _ They’re going to have to send me away. The Kaminoans are going to decommission me. They’re going to kill me. I’m going to die. I don’t want to die! _

Jake covered his face with his hands. He begged his brothers brokenly, “Please, don’t let me die…”

Bly and Concept were petrified. It hurt them a small bit that Jake thought they would do that to him because they would  _ never _ let it happen to their younger or older brothers anyways, especially a brother that was as close to them as Jake was. 

Bly always tried his best to make sure all his brothers were safe from the sorry-excuses-for-people that created them. Sometimes a few clones would slip past his fingers, but it was rare. It always hit him hard when he heard that one of his brothers had been reconditioned or decommissioned. His job as a Commander is to protect his men from  _ anything. _ To keep them alive. It killed him to lose his brothers in this war. And he’ll be damned if he let his baby brother die because he couldn’t protect him.

Bly pulled Jake into a firm hug, pulling him partially into his lap. Jake hid his face in Bly’s neck, tears threatening to fall down.

“Shhhh, shhhh. I’m not going to let you die, Jake. No one deserves to die like that. I promise I’ll keep you safe,” Bly petted Jake’s soft hair, his other hand wrapped around the middle of Jake’s back.

Concept let Jake calm down, giving his thigh a reassuring squeeze every few seconds. They could discuss his disorder thoroughly after he calmed down.

Jake finally pulled away a little bit from Bly, still holding onto him. Bly shuffled a little bit, making sure Jake was safely braced against him.

Concept waited until Jake’s blue eyes looked up to his. “Jake, I will keep the epilepsy off your official records so then the Kaminoans and the GAR can’t see. Instead, I’ll hide it in your normal record so that other medics can find it but no one else can.”

Jake nodded dejectedly, making himself as small as he could. 

“Now, I’m going to give you medication that will lower your chances of having seizures. There is no guarantee that they won’t happen, but it’s better than nothing. Some of your seizures won’t be as violent as others, they’re called Focal seizures. Tonic-Clonic seizures are the bad ones. I don’t want you to have a seizure, regardless of the type, in the middle of a battle, and not be there to help you.” 

“The same with the rest of us. I don’t want us to not be with you and you end up having a seizure,” Bly jumped in, looking down at Jake. Jake understood his brother’s concern.

“The medication part is a little...odd,” Concept continued, “I don’t know the correct dosage for you; seeing as it’s hard to get the correct dosage for anyone. So I’m going to start small and get higher. I might have to spread the medication out somehow. You might possibly take your medication every two days, depending on the dosage.”

“I will be giving you your medication until you know how to take it yourself. It’s going to be in a hypo, so I hope you don’t have a fear of needles,” Concept added off-handedly to lighten the mood.

The teenager cracked a small smile, curling closer to Bly again.

Concept knew Jake needed some time to process everything. “I’ll give you some space. Don’t stress too hard. Nothing bad is going to happen to you.”

Jake nodded, not wanting to give a verbal response. Bly hugged him tighter, sighing lightly as Concept walked over to another brother’s bedside. 

Jake started to softly cry again. His tears soaked through Bly’s blacks, wetting his shoulder. Jake moved to partially straddle his Commander’s legs, now chest-to-chest. The shy teenager had never felt this defenseless and worthless before. He had already felt worthless and useless because of his eyes, but this was a whole new level.

Bly felt his brother’s tears and his shoulders quake before hearing the soft sobs. Bly’s heart broke at his brother’s crying. 

“ _ Udesii _ , Jake. I’ve got you. I’m not going to let anything bad happen to you. It’s my job to protect you, and I will. So will Bailey, Impulse, Blulap, Break, and Concept because they love you. And I love you too,” Bly pressed a soft kiss to the soft curls on Jake’s head.

Jake stared blankly at the wall behind him, tears falling fast.

Bly’s hand resumed its comforting motions on his spine. “It’s okay, it’s okay. We’ll help you, Jake. You aren’t alone.”

Jake nuzzled closer, tears finally stopping. 

Bly glanced down for a few seconds. “Are you okay now?”

Jake didn’t respond with words, but he nodded.

Bly smiled gently and drew circles with his fingertip on Jake’s spine, knowing the gesture comforted him. He understood that this was hard for Jake. It was hard for him as well but Jake was one who had to live with it.

“I’ve always got you, Jake. We just got you and I’m not letting you go,” Bly whispered in his ear. 

Normally silence wouldn’t be so comforting. But right now, it’s the most comforting thing they heard all day.

* * *

“Shell!”

Jake ducked, his hand instinctively came up to cover the back of his neck with a smack.

Once the shell veered off somewhere, and he wasn’t in any more danger, he bounced back onto the balls of his feet and started firing. He had little cover, but the terrain of the planet offered up some options for safety. The planet was horrible because the night cycles were longer, thanks to the two moons that ruled over the planet. There was only one sun. Thus, less daylight. The lack of sunlight affects the clone negatively, making their job all the more difficult. Try taking out dozens of B1s under the blanket of ebony night without accidentally shooting a teammate. Jake barely dodged a blaster shot that would've hit his armored collarbone dead-on; even with his armor, the shot would’ve been painful and possibly causing muscular damage. Jake dropped quickly, calming the adrenaline pumping through his vines. 

The teenager observed his older brothers, all of them are close to his position. The General was about six feet away from her Commander, shouting different commands to the troopers. Jake was about twenty feet from Bly and ten feet from Bailey. Concept was crouched next to an injured brother, seemingly whispering things into his ear.

The heavy gunners—Impulse and Break— were on Jake’s right. Other troopers were scattered around.

Jake was doing fine. Until he wasn’t.

Multiple stun grenades were collectively thrown at the troopers. A strong, blinding light burst forth from each stun grenade, and a very loud bang went off. Stun grenades aren’t a problem, per se, but the one concerning issue was that the grenades went off one at a time, not in unison; meaning that it created a ‘flashing’ effect. That wasn’t good for the one teenager on the field with epilepsy.

Jake’s vision blurred, not able to distinguish solid lines anymore. He swayed once or twice. Flashing lights were one of Jake’s triggers, and those lights were bright as hell. He fumbled and reached for Bailey, who had scooted closer when Jake rocked back and forth. 

Jake found Bailey’s forearm, squeezing the plating of his brother’s bicep. Bailey returned the hand placement once Jake’s hand touched him.

“Jake? What’s wrong?” Bailey frowned under his helmet.

“F-fuzzy,” Jake stuttered, not able to say much at that point.

“What do you mean by fuzzy? Like seizure fuzzy?” Bailey asked in a rapid tone. Bailey and his brothers knew exactly what Jake’s triggers were and one of the main signs that indicated it’s about to start, and that was the ‘fuzzy’ description. “Seizure,” Jake breathlessly mumbled. Bailey gently pulled Jake’s helmet off, moving him away from the line of fire. Bailey pulled Jake up to rest against his shoulder. The older clone quickly got his medic’s attention, watching as Concept handed off an injured trooper to a different medic.

Concept quickly made his way over to Jake, noting that his body posture control is failing by the second. Jake stiffened up with a soft whimper; as if he was trying to stop his seizure from happening. Concept guessed it was a seizure because he saw the dizzying stun grenades go off, and Jake’s hands were starting to give off those second sign shakes.

“Jake, don’t try to stop it from happening. It won’t work. Just relax,” Concept ordered.

“B-but-”

“No buts, Jake. If the General sees, I’ll just say you hit your head too hard. Relax, Jake,” Concept compromised.

Jake’s body, no longer being able to fight it off any longer, suddenly went slack before his smaller frame jerked and shook. Concept directed Jake’s head to the side, in case he choked on something.

The seizure had been active for sixty seconds by the time the enemy suddenly retreated, their troopers taking too much damage.

Aayla Secura deactivated her glowing, blue lightsaber, and clipped it to her belt. She stumbled slightly at the fear and anxiousness she was receiving from the Force. Bly steadied her, placing a firm grip on her shoulder.

“Aayla?” Bly let her first name slip past his lips, knowing it was only them talking at the moment.

Aayla frowned and slowly turned. Her gaze fell on one of her troopers on the ground, in the arms of one of the medics. The trooper in question was shaking violently, limbs jerking.

The Jedi’s eyes widened in concern, while Bly’s widened in apprehensiveness. Aayla turned to Bly, raising a brow in question.“What is wrong with Jake?”

Bly played dumb, “I don’t know. ”

Aayla smiled gently in spite of the scene she just witnessed. “I know you do, Bly. What I’m wondering is why you haven’t told me? I can sense that there is something wrong with him in the Force.”

Bly sighed, knowing he had been caught. Jake didn’t want the General to know about his epilepsy; not many clones knew about it anyways. 

“I’ll tell you. I will, but not now. That’s up to him,” Bly cocked his head towards the trembling teenager. 

Aayla could understand that. “Go to your little brother, Bly. I’ll be here when you’re done,” the Jedi kindly dismissed her Commander.

Bly nodded firmly, then crossed the barren field to reach the others.

“How long has he been seizing?” Bly looked to Concept.

Concept sighed, “About two minutes. It should be over soon.”

Bly had to refrain from touching Jake, knowing it might escalate the seizure. 

Roughly twenty seconds later, Jake’s body slowly came to a stop, going limp almost in Concept's lap.

Bly stroked Jake’s hair out of his eyes. “Come on, Jake. Come back to us.”

Jake's limbs stopped jerking, only twitching lightly. He laid there for two minutes, slowly getting a grip on himself while struggling to stay awake.

His eyes fluttered open and closed multiple times. The tears in his eyes made it difficult. Jake swallowed back the tears, not wanting to cry because he knew it would’ve been even more exhausting.

“There you are,” Bailey said softly, holding Jake’s hand.

Jake groaned lightly, sitting up slowly. Concept braced Jake as he moved, pushing on his back lightly. 

“Are you in pain anywhere?” Concept asked from behind, going into protective medic mode.

Jake mutely shook his head. He pulled himself to stand with his brothers doing the same. Bly took one of his arms, gripping him tightly, but not painfully. Concept gave Jake a once over once he was completely standing. The medic deemed Jake conscious enough that he didn’t have to hover around him.

Jake leaned tiredly on his Commander, making his way, with the help of Bly, over to the camp where the rest of the troopers were going. Bly smiled as Jake got as close to him as possible. Bly held him closer just so then Jake knew he wasn't alone. The Commander led them across the plains as slow as possible, not wanting to rush Jake.

“Are you okay for now?” Bly asked once they were settled on the ground around their brothers. Break sat next to Bailey, who was tracing his own vine tattoo that crawled up his left forearm out of habit. Impulse was next to Bailey, slightly farther away than Break was, and Concept sat next to the heavy gunner.

Jake nodded and laid down, resting his head on Bly’s leg. Bly buried his fingers in Jake’s slightly dirty hair, getting all the tangles out.

Bly heard someone scoff a few feet away. He had a feeling he knew who it was.

“They’re coddling the kid, again,” a clone announced.

Bly glared daggers at the clone. That particular clone, Val, was jabbing at Jake for the umpteenth time. Bly was about to snap at his trooper, but someone else did it for him.

“Val, get over yourself. He’s a kid! Let him be a kid for once in his life!” Jax yelled at his brother. His  _ riduur _ , Bunker, who had an arm around him, looked momentarily shocked, but then that melted into amusement. 

Val was about to respond, but Jax cut him off, “And I swear to all that is sacred, I will  _ throw _ a rock at you to knock some sense into your thick skull!" Val opens his mouth, but Jax wasn’t done yet, “Leave him alone. You aren’t his Commander, you can’t order him around. He’s not  _ your  _ kid. He’s theirs,” Jax pointed to the Alpha Company.

Bly was stunned into silence but he gave Val a challenging glance along with the Alpha Company. Jake hadn’t looked up from the ground, scared to meet the eyes of his brothers.

Val snapped his jaw shut, turning away. Jax seemed satisfied enough and he leaned back into his husband’s embrace.

Bly leaned down to whisper to Jake, “See? I told you we love you. Val is wrong, and I seriously want to punch him sometimes, but he loves you in his own way. Don’t forget they will always love you.”

Jake nodded, turning to the other side to bury his face in Bly’s blacks. The Commander was grateful that he had taken his top armor off. 

“Love you,” Jake spoke so softly that Bly almost missed it.

Bly’s hand stilled in Jake’s curls, looking to his brothers. They were all smiling softly, even Impulse and Blulap. Impulse was the only one to hear these words first before anyone else. He feels an odd sense of pride in that. 

“Love you too,” Bly whispered back, vowing to protect Jake from anyone or anything.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, I know, I just did Comet's origin story but this could also be considered just Jake's epilepsy story. Thank you so so much for reading. Things got a little hectic and this took me longer than I would have liked to get out, but here it is! 
> 
> Beta reader/Editor-@AngelWars (Ao3). We had a few technical difficulties during the beta reading section but we got through them. I give complete credit to Angel for creating the clones, Concept, Break, Impulse, and Blulap for the alpha company. All I did was write them.
> 
> Let me know if you have any requests! 
> 
> What do you think?


	37. Chapter 37-What Do We Do?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fives wakes up and needs some...attention. But he's not the only person that needs attention that night.

Fives was pulled from his dream, panting lightly. The ARC groaned lightly, his skin flushed, and he felt oddly aroused. Fives stretched on his bunk, not feeling the tightness in his pants disappear. Fives grumbled under his breath, just wanting to have one peaceful night of sleep.

He turned his head on his pillow, sighing as his gaze fell on Tup’s sleeping form. He was so lucky that Tup didn’t have a nightmare tonight or Fives would’ve been in big trouble otherwise. Having a wet dream while sleeping in the same bed as his kid was just plain bad. Rex would never forgive him for it.

 _Fuck everything_. 

Fives just wanted to go to sleep but there was no way in fresh hell that his sexual feelings would let him. But he was in the worst place to have a boner. It was the middle of the night with Torrent sleeping in the barracks. Oh, and they’re soldiers; they are the lightest sleepers ever. 

It took every fiber of Fives’ being to not look at Rex’s sleeping form. Fives briefly wondered why he was in his old bunk instead of sleeping with his boyfriend, but he brushed it aside. Exhausted, he pulled himself up from the bed and crossed over to Rex’s. He flopped down silently, lacing his fingers with Rex’s. He was too tired to wake Rex up to have sex, that was a problem he could face later.

Fives pulled his eyes open an hour later, ready to curse all the gods. He felt the tightness in his pants reappear. He was so tempted to scream into the pillow but he wasn’t about to risk his brothers waking up to him yelling.

Fives turned his tired eyes to the blonde man he was sharing the bed with. Rex was turned on his side, his back facing Fives. The ARC smiled sadly, knowing Rex had been exhausted before they fell asleep after staying up with Tup the night before. Tup had screamed his head off that night, scaring all of them awake. Fives was in the training room with Echo, who had a spike of insomnia, and wasn’t there to help Rex calm Tup down. 

When Fives and Echo had come back Tup was silently sobbing with Kix and Rex holding him. Fives tried to come close but Tup shrank away from him. When Tup realized what he did, he profusely apologized to Fives. Fives didn’t take it to heart and he laid in Rex’s and his bunk, watching from afar. Rex didn’t sleep that night.

Fives hated to do this to Rex, knowing his Captain needed sleep, but he couldn’t take it anymore. Fives spooned Rex, snuggling close so he could run a hand down Rex’s chest. Fives’ hand traveled down the front of Rex and slowly reached the waistband of Rex’s bottom blacks. Fives was amused that Rex hadn’t stirred yet. 

The ARC’s fingers breached the fabric, feeling the curly hair before he reached Rex’s soft member, the complete opposite of Fives’ hard one. Fives reached underneath and fondled with Rex’s balls, rolling them lightly. He switched between that and stroking Rex, feeling his cock come to life in his hand. Fives pressed a kiss to Rex’s shoulder. _There you go Rex’ika._

Fives hugged Rex close, wanting to be as close as possible. Even with being a very independent ARC that should be able to go without physical touch, Fives loved to curl up against Rex when they were alone. Rex always understood that sometimes Fives just needed to be held, much like Tup.

Fives continued stroking; running a teasing hand over the tip. A few minutes later Rex was rock hard in Fives’ hand, skin getting flushed. He felt Rex stir slightly, shifting softly. 

Fives squeezed Rex’s waist, trying to make him wake up with touch only. It worked when Rex slowly opened his tired and heavy golden eyes, confused about why he was awake from someone touching him somehow and why he felt tight down there. He knew there wouldn’t be a reason for him to be aroused...unless. Fives. It was the only logical explanation. 

Rex pressed his back against Fives’ chest, sighing lightly. Rex panted lightly, wanting more from him.

His boyfriend’s hand made a tighter tunnel around his shaft, giving slow strokes. Fives pulled Rex back even closer, kissing his neck lightly. Rex groaned, huffing lightly as he gave into Fives’ actions.

Rex rolled his hips into his boyfriend’s hand, moaning super lightly. He shook his head to get a grip on himself. If he was going to indulge Fives, he would need some answers.

“Waking me up to jerk me off in a room full of our brothers, and more importantly, our kid, Fives? That’s a little taboo even for you, don’t you think?” Rex teased his boyfriend but rocked into his hand.

Fives grinned. “You contradicting asshole. You love this and you can’t deny it.”

Rex didn’t answer, but he groaned low in his throat. He pushed himself up so he could turn over in the bunk to face Fives, his golden eyes practically glowing with lust in the dark. Fives’ hand slips back in front of his frame, gently putting it over Rex’s heart. They both surge forward, a battle of tongues beginning. Rex rolled Fives on top of him, hands settling low on his hips.

Fives groaned into Rex’s mouth, straddling his hips. The ARC’s worn hands travel across the length of Rex’s body. 

Rex pulled Fives closer, groping his ass. His warm hands slipped under Fives’ blacks, tugging it up. Fives lifted his arms, trusting his abs to hold him up in his bent-over position. Rex slowly pulled his boyfriend’s shirt off, revealing Fives’ tan skin, his torso and abs littered in scars. Rex’s gaze runs over the extent of Fives’ front before stopping at a vicious-looking scar that was jagged and curved in the middle of Fives’ stomach; more towards the left side. 

The heat slowed down and remained comfortable. Fives watched with a small smile, shivering as Rex traced the scar. 

This was his newest one, from roughly five weeks ago. He had stupidly broken cover while next to Echo and took seven blaster shots to the chest, and shrapnel embedded into his side. He had scared the shit out of Rex and everyone else.

Fives could tell that Rex was having some flashbacks of the pain the Captain felt when Kix gave up on CPR. 

“Hey,” the ARC said so quietly, “I’m fine. I’m breathing, Rex’ika. It’s okay.”

Rex sighed but nodded. He tugged Fives forward, sharing a soft kiss. Fives leaned his head on Rex’s, letting him feel for himself that Fives’ alive and wouldn’t be leaving him anytime soon.

“I know.” Rex violently kissed Fives again, crashing their lips together. Fives moaned at the kiss, trying to get closer. “We’ve got to be quiet _Mesh’la_ , or we’ll wake the others,” Rex reminded him.

Rex looked down and saw how restrictive Fives’ pants were on him. Rex smirked, kissing him again. “You need some help down there, babe?”

Fives whined. “Please? I dreamt about you. I need you, please.”

Rex started to work the side of Fives’ neck, leaving nips and small kisses. “What? You couldn’t get me out of your head?”

Fives sighed, rolling his head to give Rex more room. “You have no idea.”

Rex continued to leave kisses up and down Fives’ tan skin, his right hand slid down to meet the front of Fives’ bulge. Without going inside of the fabric, Rex rocked his hand over Fives’ cock, almost grinding his hand against him. Fives almost moaned out loud, but his hand shot up to his mouth, holding the noise back even though he wanted to let it out.

“Shhhhhh, shhhhhhhh. Easy, Fiv’ika,” Rex crooned, finding Fives trying not to moan fucking amazing. Fives rutted against his hand, burying his face in Rex’s strong shoulder. Rex’s left hand rested on the middle of Fives’ back.

“How do you want me tonight, love?”

Fives shook in his arms, full of pent up arousal. “I don’t know. Anything. Anything, just _please_.”

Rex nodded. “Well since you woke my tools up, how about I open you up slowly and make you beg for it? Then we have some... _fun_. How does that sound?”

Fives suckled on Rex’s neck. “Please.”

Rex quickly flipped Fives over in the blink of an eye. Fives let his body spread out, completely open for Rex. Rex ran his lips down Fives’ chest, stopping at the hem of Fives’ black bottoms. Rex teased the fabric off of his boyfriend, hearing Fives swallow back a groan. 

Soon Fives was bare except for his briefs that held back his throbbing member. Rex took a look at the way Fives’ tan skin contrasted to the grey sheets underneath him. Fives shook with anticipation, letting quiet moans slip past his chapped lips. Rex held his hips down, leaning up to kiss him again. Fives deepened the kiss and tried to grind against Rex’s leg, but the Captain’s grip on his hips was too strong.

“I suggest you stand down ARC. I’m still your Captain,” Rex forcefully suggested, his tone husky and low. The words, though meant to be a threat, went straight to Fives’ cock. He twitched, and Rex felt it.

Rex smirked down at him. “Someone is feeling dirty tonight. If we were alone I would fuck you through this mattress.”

Fives moaned as silent as possible. _Kriff. Why the hell does he have to be such a damn tease?_ “What if we were alone? Like in the rec room.”

Rex thought for a moment, slowing down the heat slightly. “You dirty but genius ARC trooper. Let’s go.” Rex pulled Fives up, tugging him along. Fives eagerly followed and grabbed his bottom blacks so they could have some sort of an alibi, giggling as he did. Rex closed the door behind him and pulled Fives into a raging kiss. Thank the stars that no one else was in the rec room. 

Fives was finally able to let out all the sounds he was holding back. They still had to be quiet, but they could be more vocal. Fives moaned as Rex’s hand went over his covered cock. 

Rex hummed when Fives moaned, “You like that?”

“Yes, Captain,” Fives groaned, saying Rex’s title on purpose.

Rex almost stopped his movements in shock but recovered quickly. “Okay, trooper. Two can play that game. If you cum before I tell you to, you’ll be punished. Understood, trooper?” Rex growled low in his throat.

Fives whimpered at the promise. He nodded vigorously, needing Rex to take control. 

Rex jumped onto the couch, pulling Fives with him. Fives was pinned under Rex’s large frame, his boyfriend’s arms on either side of his head. “Fair warning trooper, the longer you disobey my commands, the longer I’ll make you wait to cum.”

“Yes sir,” Fives smirked, not fully believing his boyfriend. He flipped their position by digging his knee into Rex’s side, making him grimace. Fives was now on top, giving Rex a challenging look. “I thought you were supposed to be a Captain. You let your guard down.”

Rex grinned, promising himself to punish Fives for his disobedience later; threatening would work fine for now. “I suggest you let me up trooper.”

“Or what, _Captain?”_ Fives purred.

“Or there will be hell to pay,” Rex threatened with a growl.

Fives just grinned and continued to grind down on Rex’s lap. The smile was the cute little teasing kind that he would shoot at Rex in the sparring room or on the Command deck when the Jedi aren’t looking. Rex was losing his patience with his boyfriend. 

He rolled his eyes and flipped them over again, grinning sardonically at Fives when he heard him let out an annoyed huff. 

“You let your guard down.” Rex shot back.

Fives struggled under him. Fives is an ARC; he was not weak at all. But Rex was strong as hell; having both ARC and Jango’s training under his belt of experience. Fives pouted until Rex connected their lips again. Rex slipped his shirt off, revealing tan skin that was ripped with rock hard muscle. Fives ran his fingers over Rex’s abs, then slid them up to play with Rex’s short hair. 

“Strip,” Rex ordered in a clipped tone. Fives took his briefs off and tossed them unceremoniously over the back pillows of the couch; he couldn’t bother to look where they landed, completely focused on the stone god in front of him. Rex took the rest of his blacks off, his grey briefs along with it. Fives could barely conceal a husky moan.

Fives’ member was pretty big in girth, but Rex was thicker. Rex’s cock was eight inches long and was at least three inches wide. Fives was about 7 inches long and 2 inches wide. Rex shifted back towards Fives’ feet. 

“Since you disobeyed me, you aren’t allowed to make any sounds until I say so,” Rex gave no warning as he slipped his first knuckle into Fives’ hole. Fives bit his lip, rolling his hips into Rex’s finger. Rex smirked as he slowly inserted his finger fully, feeling Fives shift underneath him. He gently thrusted deeper into Fives, making sure to not hit his prostate just yet.

Next, Rex easily added his second finger, giving a brutal thrust when Fives moaned.

“I said no sounds, trooper.”

Fives breathed heavily, chest heaving, brain scrambling in an effort to obey his boyfriend’s orders. Rex could be devilishly brutal when he wanted to. 

“Good boy,” Rex praised him when his moans stopped. Rex crooked his fingers up and to the left, still missing his prostate. He was going to be evil before being nice.

The callouses on Rex’s two fingers were driving Fives up the wall as they passed through his slick entrance easily. He slapped a hand over his mouth when Rex started scissoring him. He heard Rex chuckle low in his chest, amused. 

Rex lifted his chin where it was tucked against his chin and pulled him into a kiss. Fives responded heatedly, running his tongue over Rex’s lower lip. Rex opened his mouth, giving Fives granted access. 

“You can talk now,” Rex softly allowed, kissing him again.

Fives let out a string of moans that had been trapped inside of him. He whimpered as Rex slipped his ring finger in. _Three fingers! Aah~_ Fives shut his eyes tightly.

“ _Udesii, udesii,”_ Rex crooned.

“Captain, please,” Fives whined, grinding down on Rex’s fingers to get more friction. The wet sound that came from his hole made him squirm.

“You want me to fuck you? Is that what you want, trooper?” Rex asked a bit redundantly.

“Yes sir, please,” Fives begged.

Rex pulled back slightly, lining up his dripping cock with Fives’ wet hole. Rex slowly pushed in, loving the long drawn out croon that escaped from Fives. 

Fives felt like he was being split open by Rex, but it was an arousing feeling, the pain. Fives’ arousal definitely grew with every inch Rex slid into him. 

“Fuck, you’re tight,” Rex crooned, tilting his head back lightly. Fives moaned loudly, not caring if the walls weren’t thick enough to keep sounds from traveling through. 

Fives whimpered as Rex pushed in further. It didn’t matter how many times they have had sex, it still hurt a little bit, but it’s definitely the best kind of pain. 

Rex’s thumb traced light circles on the ARC’s hip. “Easy trooper, just relax.”Rex always gave Fives time to adjust to the stretch but he would never wait too long. He slowly slid in for 30 seconds before violently bottoming out. Fives turned his head to the side and screamed into the couch, shuddering at the sensational feeling of being filled to the brim.

Rex pulled out to his tip only to forcefully plunge back in, making Fives jerk. Fives released a breathless moan, unable to do anything else. He rocked his hip lightly, matching Rex’s thrusts.

“Fuck,” Fives cursed through gritted teeth.

“Flip,” Rex ordered.

Fives quickly let Rex flip them over, still completely inside of him. Fives groans at the position switch-up and tilts his head back. Rex’s hands cradled his hips, gripping tight. Fives moaned loudly where Rex’s cock was completely on his prostate as he sat down fully.

“Remember what I said, trooper. No cumming,” Rex jogged his memory.

Fives gave a choked sob and looked into Rex’s eyes, remembering the order that Rex gave him earlier. He could easily break that order in an instant but he didn’t want Rex to be pissed. But he wasn’t sure if he could hold back the urge. Rex sighed gently, knowing what Fives was thinking just by reading his body language and expression.

“Tell me when you’re close and I’ll help you, deal?” Rex compromised. Fives relaxed a little bit, knowing he could rely on Rex. 

Rex started to slowly lift Fives off of him, then slowly lowered him again. Fives hummed in pleasure, head rolling back. Rex cupped the back of his neck and brought him closer to kiss him deeply.

Fives moaned into the open-mouth kiss, rising on Rex’s cock by himself. Rex continued to kiss him, tasting him. 

Fives moaned loudly, “Fucking damn it.”

You like that?” Rex smirked.

“Yes sir,” Fives responded.

Rex aimed deeper, hitting Fives’ prostate head-on. Fives collapsed on Rex’s chest, unable to do any of the work anymore, trembling hard. Fives didn’t know why but he was completely overstimulated already. Oh well, Rex gets to do some work.

Fives couldn’t hold back his whimper. _Fucking fuck, aah~ he’s so deep._

He could feel Rex’s smirk against his neck. Rex suckled lightly on his skin, not hard. They had an officer’s meeting tomorrow with the Jedi and they didn’t need to know what they did during their free time. Sure, they could guess, but nobody needed to give them hard evidence.

“What do you want, trooper?” Rex huskily asked. 

“H-harder,” Fives could barely get the word out without stuttering. Rex was already thrusting hard, but he could work with his boyfriend’s request.

“Hold on to me,” Rex gave him his first and last warning before flipping them over again to a new position, doggy style.

Fives squealed at the position change when Rex continued thrusting into him.

“Shhhh, shhhhhh. Calm down,” Rex broke his cold facade for a second, trying to get Fives to quiet down so they don’t wake anyone up.

“Captain, please,” Fives begged.

Rex kissed him lightly. He slowed his thrusts for a moment, giving him some time to adjust. 

“You want it?” Rex asked.

Fives nodded, back arching slightly. “Please, please.”

Rex thrusted hard, punishing Fives’ prostate. Fives muffled a scream again, muscles tensing. Rex doesn’t show him any mercy, not slowing down or de-escalating the power behind his thrusts. 

Pleasure pooled in Fives’ stomach, and Fives couldn’t hold back anymore.

“I'm gonna cum. I c-can’t…” Fives trailed off, breathing heavy.

Rex’s hand clenched down on the tip of Fives’ cock, stopping it all completely. Fives whined and shifted trying his hardest to not let his load escape him.

Rex ran his hand in a circular motion on Fives’ stomach, making comforting shushing noises. Fives’ whole body shook with the effort of trying to not cum. He distinctly remembered he wasn’t allowed to cum until Rex said so.

Rex rocked into him lightly, grinning devilishly when Fives whimpered.

“ _Just let me cum already. Please_.” Fives slipped into Mando’a, entirely overrun by wave after wave of ecstasy and arousal. He can’t hold on any longer.

Rex thought for a moment, then brutally thrusted into Fives, hand still stopping his boyfriend’s load.

Rex was so close as well. _I’ll let him cum. But next time he isn’t cumming for hours._

“You want to cum, trooper?”

Fives lets out a broken sob, “Please, please, please. I want to cum. Please.”

Rex didn’t release his hand.

“Rex, _please_!”

Rex slowly pumped Fives’ cock, feeling him twitch in his hand.

Fives groaned a bit louder, throwing his head back, drooling. Each twist, each pull, each up and down motion is enough to send him spiraling over the edge of the cliff. The climax was powerful. Fives felt the waves smash into him one at a time as his cock made one last twitch before spraying strings on strings of cum onto the couch. His eyes rolled back into his head.

 _“Cyareee~”_ Fives mewled in gratification, almost slumping forward.

Fives hadn’t finished letting out his load, so his slick passageways clenched around Rex’s girth, pulling on it, squeezing. Rex grunted and stiffened up, cock twitching with its own release. Fives feels warmth fill him up. _Yesss._ He thought, whining out loud, loving the familiar sensation. Rex fucked him through their orgasms, not giving up until he tires himself out. Exhaustion settled heavily into his muscles and bones like clay, forcing him to slowly come to a halt, panting hard.

Rex braced himself with his arms, shaking from the aftermath of his release. Fives was still whining, completely overstimulated. 

Rex brought him close to kiss him gently and softly. “Shhhhh, shhhhhh, take it easy.” 

Fives squirmed lightly, trying to get rid of whatever was causing his stimulation other than Rex’s cock still inside of him.

Once Fives’ calmed down, Rex pulled out of him, groaning as his muscles tensed in protest. He laid down next to Fives. Fives cuddled close to Rex’s chest, breathing slowly. Rex held him close, placing his cheek on Fives’ head. 

Rex broke the silence, “We should probably go clean up.”

Fives groaned and buried himself deeper into Rex’s chest. “You are my least favorite person right now.”

“Says the man that just got fucked by me,” Rex chuckled. 

Fives rolled off of Rex begrudgingly. They headed down the hall towards the ‘fresher with their blacks in hand, completely naked. 

After they washed off, they re-entered the rec room and walked into the bunk room, fully clothed this time. Rex and Fives collapsed on the bunk, facing each other. Rex laced their hands together, settling them on the sheets. The mood changed real quick; Fives became tense, staring at the sheets.

Rex noticed Fives’ concentrated expression. The Captain stroked the length of his lover’s spine, making him shiver. 

“What are you thinking about?” Rex’s tone wasn’t accusing, it was light as to not pressure Fives into answering.

Fives frowned and turned in Rex’s arms, facing Tup, still keeping their hands laced together like puzzle pieces. Fives was so caught up in his thoughts that Rex had to shake him once to make sure Fives was still with him.

“It’s nothing,” Fives settled for ignoring it rather than talking to Rex about it. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to tell Rex about what he was thinking, but he was terrified by just even thinking about it. He didn’t know what Rex wanted in the future, and Fives didn’t want to open that can of worms.

“Tell me, please?” Rex’s warm lips brushed against his shoulder, waiting patiently. When Fives didn’t speak, the Captain drew circles on Fives’ stomach. 

“What are we going to do after the war?” Fives asked in a small voice. 

Rex sighed lightly. _So this is what he’s worried about._

“I don’t know, Fives. What do you want?”

Fives' gaze didn’t leave Tup. He had to swallow the lump in his throat when he answered, “I just want him to be safe.”

Rex’s arms wrapped around Fives’ waist, setting his head on top of the ARC’s. He had the same feeling as Fives.

Rex had always denied the fact that he had the capacity to love someone other than his squadmates. All the Commanders called his bluff constantly, even from the very start of the war, but Rex had remained hardheaded. He had formed Torrent with Kix, Jesse, and other clones, including those who’ve passed on, with the full intention of just being their Captain and nothing else, not their ori’vod, or cyare, or anything having to do with special connections. Kix and Jesse had respected that, needing only each other, having already taken their vows before leaving Kamino.

But then Rex met a hotshot younger brother on Rishi; Fives had been the bane of his existence for months, but Rex had to admit to himself that he missed Fives when he and Echo went to train with Blitz and Alpha-17 to become ARC troopers. Rex didn’t hear the end of it when his squadmates found out he was dating Fives.

Then the teenagers started to roll in. First Zeke, second Wooley, third Jake, fourth Comet, and finally Tup. 

Rex specifically remembered that all of the Commanders were hardasses until they received their teenagers. After they got a teenager, they went soft. Surprisingly, Cody went soft first before Ponds did, even though Wooley came to Cody after Zeke went to Ponds. 

Rex also vividly remembered saying to the Commanders, _“_ _If I ever let or get attached to a teenager in Torrent, let alone the 501st, you have permission to say ‘I told you so’. But it’s not going to happen.”_

Oh, how wrong he was to say that. Not even three months later he had received news from Kix that there was a kid in the medbay that was _sixteen_.

After talking to the teenager with Jesse, he pulled Fives to the side. He didn’t know what he was feeling; it was a surge of protectiveness, but something more than that. Fives gave him a pitiful, almost sad smile. He knew Rex had fallen in love with the teenager. 

Rex would go to the end of the universe to protect his kid. And Fives knew that.

But the way Fives had said his previous statement, it sounded like there was something else going on with the two of them.

“Why did you say it like that?” Rex asked, not taking his eyes off of Tup.

Fives sighed, sinking into Rex’s hold, “He’s jumpy around me. He doesn’t want me to touch him unless it’s his idea…I’m just wondering if I did something wrong.” Fives sounded so dejected and it hurt Rex. 

“Love, you didn’t do anything wrong.” Rex kissed his temple lightly. “Tup is...going through some things right now. It may scare us, but we didn’t do anything wrong, I promise.”

“Scaring us is an understatement and you know it. It's terrifying,” Fives sounded empty.

Rex sighed again, ignoring the fear gripping his heart. He knew that feeling scared was part of being a parent, but what are you supposed to do when you are terrified for their life?

Fives continued in a blank tone, “We are scared to leave him alone in a room because we think he’ll hurt himself. It is second nature for us to check the room for blasters or vibroblades before we sleep because we think that Tup will slip one away. We are _terrified_ to leave him alone for a single second because we think by the time we’ll see him again he'll be dead because he killed himself. Why the hell are we so scared of things like that if we didn’t screw something up, Rex?”

Rex could feel Fives getting riled up, so he ran a soothing hand through his hair. “Because Fives, we love him. Do you know why there is a word for a child that has lost their parents but not a word for parents who lost their child?”

“No,” Fives responded, looking Rex in the eye.

“Because the pain is _unimaginable_. We would be broken beyond repair if we lost him,” Rex explained in a soothing voice.

“Because we love him so much,” Fives added offhandedly.

Rex hummed, “Mhm. We are concerned because he is going through a hard time that, sadly, he has to figure out himself.”

Rex nuzzled his neck after a beat of silence. “Is there anything else you want to talk about?”

Fives shrugged. “Marriage?”

Rex cocked his head to the side; it wasn’t a bad question. “Do you _want_ us to get married?”

Fives turned again so he could look at Rex completely, rambling lightly, “To be honest yes. But I don’t know when. I also don’t want to force you into marriage just because I want it-”

Rex cut him off with a kiss. Fives leans into the kiss, then relaxes. Rex smiles, leaning away before saying, “Fives, breathe. Marriage is something I want... but not right now.”

They were interrupted by the sound of someone tossing and turning, then gasping. Without even looking, Fives and Rex deflated. Fives leaned his head on Rex’s collarbone for a few seconds before pulling away and propping himself up on his elbows.

Tup was softly crying, shoulders shaking. His hair made a curtain around his face, blocking his _Buirs’_ view of his face.

“Shhhhhhhhh, shhhhhhhh,” Rex calmly hushed Tup, sitting up completely. 

Tup turned to look at Fives and Rex, his eyes held in tears, looking so defeated. Tup slowly got out of the bed crossed his arms over his chest and walked over to their bunk. Fives held his arms up, catching Tup as he collapsed in his arms. He pulled Tup as close as humanly possible, scooting so he was closer to the middle of the bed. Rex’s fingers brushed Tup’s hair back, muttering words under his breath while Fives held him tight. 

“What was it this time?” Fives drummed a slow rhythm on Tup’s spine with his fingers. 

“Y-you w-were both d-dead,” Tup sobbed into the ARC’s neck.

Fives felt horrible for him. Rex and him _just_ had a conversation about Tup...dying, and then Tup had a nightmare about them dying. 

“We’re here, Tup’ika. Right here.” Rex hugged him from behind. 

Tup sobbed harshly, his cries being blocked by only Fives’ shoulder. He sounded so broken; like there was nothing in the world that could fix the cracks in his glass. Fives stared blankly at Rex over Tup’s shoulder, rubbing the space between the teenager’s shoulder blades.

“Tup’ika, try to listen to my heartbeat, okay baby? Can you do that for me ad’ika?” Fives asked lightly, letting Rex move so he could run the pads of his through the dark locks.

Tup nuzzled closer, sniffling. He shifted, so he heard his brother’s heartbeat pounding away, rhythmically behind his ribcage. Tup jumped randomly a few minutes later, scaring the crap out of Fives and Rex. They thought that something hurt Tup even though it didn’t make complete sense seeing as they didn’t have anything sharp in the bed. Rex quickly lifted Tup’s chin softly, directing his eyes to him.

“What did you just hear?” Rex guessed Tup jumped because of a noise he _thought_ he heard. It was the only plausible explanation. 

“G-gunfire, t-then s-screaming,” Tup answered honestly.

Fives cradled him tighter. “Tup, where are you right now? Just answer even if it sounds stupid.”

Tup nodded. “B-barracks, in the b-bunk room.”

“Who is holding you?” Rex asked the next question.

“F-Fives.”

“Where are the gunshots?” Fives asked his final question; he knew there were no gunshots that Tup would hear any more now that he was focusing on something else. The Captain and ARC both held each other’s gaze and waited for their answer.

“...T-there are none,” Tup finally answered.

“See? You’re safe.” Rex smiled sadly, brushing a strand of ebony hair away from in front of Tup’s eyes. Tup broke down into another round of quiet tears, curling against Fives’ warm chest. Fives felt his heartbreak in two as the kid tried to bury himself in his chest. 

Fives couldn’t bring himself to say anything, thinking nothing will help. All Tup needed at that moment was someone to hold him as he fell apart. They weren’t worried about an anxiety attack, Tup wasn’t filled with anxiety; it was only sadness and grief. Rex pulled Fives into a lying position with Tup cradled against him. Rex knew better than to try and pull Tup away from Fives. So Rex got as close as possible, hand resting on Tup’s leg. 

Tup whined as he tried to breathe deeply, too exhausted to cry anymore. His hand gripped the back of Fives’ blacks. 

“Shhhh. Breathe in for four.” Fives squeezed Tup’s hip.

Tup didn’t do it.

“Come on, Tup. In for four,” Fives pressed, needing Tup to calm down so he didn’t wake the others. Tup finally obeyed and breathed in, held his breath for seven seconds, then letting it all out slowly. Fives pushed on his diaphragm whenever Tup started to struggle to breathe again, coaching Tup through every second of his mini-breakdown. 

Fives ran his fingers down the length of the inside of Tup’s left forearm. He stopped when he felt something unnatural. _What the hell was that?_

Fives frowned. He ran his thumb slowly over the same spot, feeling something odd under his finger. The thin lines he felt crisscrossed over each other, not placed in any particular order. He ignored it for now. Little did he know, he would forget about it later.

Tup’s crying broke their hearts. And apparently, it broke someone else’s heart as well. Rex and Fives heard shuffling from the other side of the room. Kix was propped up by Jesse’s chest, both gazing tiredly, but their gazes held nothing but concern for the trio. Kix would only intervene if Rex or Fives wanted him to.

The Captain shook his head firmly, letting Kix know everything was okay for now. The medic sighed sadly and looked at the crying teenager for a fleeting moment, before getting pulled back down into a lying position by Jesse.

Fives’ attention was back on Tup. The teenager looked broken beyond repair. His honey eyes were bloodshot, dark circles hung under them. He hadn’t slept well in weeks and it was taking a toll on his body. Comet made no progress what-so-ever trying to get Tup to sleep more, and he was having more anxiety attacks, and his depression spiked abnormally nowadays. Fives and Rex thought he was doing better, but they were wrong. 

Tup’s tears slowed down.

 _“He’s breaking my heart,”_ Fives muttered to Rex in Mando’a, not accounting for the fact that Tup knew Mando’a. Fives and Rex have always had conversations in Mando’a and they never had a reason to think Tup knew Mando’a. The teenager felt guilty as the words left his brother’s mouth. 

_“This is getting out of hand. I don’t know what to do anymore,”_ Rex added, stroking Tup’s hair. 

To the upset teenager, that sounded a lot like, ‘he’s a lost cause. What the fuck do we do with a screwed kid?’. Tup tried to pull away, to get away, but Fives’ arms tightened.

“We love you kiddo,” Fives whispered in Tup’s ear, holding him tight. 

“Love you too,” Tup responded through tears.

Fives could hear Tup getting choked up again. “Oh, baby, don’t cry again. Rex and I aren’t going away. We won’t leave you.” Fives knew that those last two sentences weren't ideal when they were fighting a war, but if it brought his kid some comfort then he'd say it. 

“Try and sleep again Tup. We’ll wake you up every time you have another nightmare.” Rex wasn’t sure if Tup was going to fight them on going back to sleep. The teenager must’ve been insanely tired because he nodded without protest. 

Tup switched with his parents, so now Rex was holding Tup while Fives pressed against his back. Tup’s puppy eyes stared into Rex’s eyes, wanting to ask something but he didn’t.

“What is it Tup?”

“ _Buir_ , c-can I stay in bed with you?” Tup’s voice was so small it was painful to hear.

Fives answered, stroking Tup’s raven locks, “Of course, kiddo.”

Rex pulled Tup impossibly closer, trying to hide him away from the nasty world. The exhaustion settled into Tup and the teenager slowly fell asleep. Rex’s gaze never left Tup’s frame. He watched and felt every rise and fall of Tup’s chest, feeling relief course through him every time Tup took a breath. _Please, never stop breathing._ Rex pleaded internally.

The ARC trooper shifted forward, and tucked his face into the pillow, blocking his face. Rex frowned at the odd action made by his boyfriend, and after a few seconds of thought, he slid his hand under Fives’ cheek to make eye contact with him. Fives’ eyes were clouded with a few tears; not much, but enough to worry Rex.

“Why are you crying?” Rex asked in a whisper, not wanting to wake the kid up.

Fives shook his head. “Nothing. I’m fine.”

“Fives,” Rex growled in warning. They had already been through that earlier that night.

Fives blinked the tears away. “I just feel horrible for him.” Fives gently stroked the back of Tup’s head.

“Me too,” Rex responded quietly, “I don’t know what to do for him anymore. It’s like he’s slowly falling apart piece by piece.”

Fives cuddled close to Tup’s back, his left arm wrapping around Tup’s middle. The teenager shifted at the added weight to his body but he leaned back into Fives’ chest. The ARC buried his nose in Tup’s hair, blowing warm air on his scalp every time he exhaled. 

“What the fuck do we do?” Fives rhetorically asked, knowing he wasn’t going to get an answer.

Rex leaned over Tup and pressed a kiss to the crown of Fives’ head. He pulled away and let his eyes flutter closed. “Try to sleep _Rayshe’a._ We can’t do anything for him right now except hold him.”

Fives slowly threaded their fingers. It went against every fiber in his being to not do anything about it right now. His instincts burned, but Fives allowed himself to relax against the bunk and slowly fall asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My apologies for working on this for so long. I hope you guys enjoyed this! I swear this was supposed to be all smut but I couldn't resist the angst and fluff.
> 
> Beta Reader/Editor-AngelWars (Ao3). Angel had the amazing pleasure (her words not mine) of naming this chapter! I put her on the spot and let her name it and I loved this one in particular. 
> 
> Question for all of you. As we get close to the Holidays, would you like for me to write a fluff chapter or heavy angst with fluff after? You can suffer during the Holidays then finally get fluff or you can get allllll the fluff. You pick.
> 
> Who do you want to see in the next chapter? I have a couple of clones in mind but you tell me. 💙
> 
> What do you think? Requests?


	38. Chapter 38-Comet Sick

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Comet gets sick and his older brothers have to take care of him.

Blitz frowned as a thought crossed his mind. He hadn’t seen Comet all day except for when he left the bunk room. He looked around the rec room, just checking that Comet didn’t sneak out of the bunk room somehow; and sure enough, Comet was nowhere to be seen. 

“Wolffe, where is Comet?” The sharpshooter turned his gaze to his Commander, hoping he would have an answer. 

Wolffe looked confused but he still answered, “Last I saw him he was still sleeping. He hasn't come out yet?” Blitz shook his head, seeing that Arks had started to take an interest in the conversation.

Ace spoke from the left of Blitz and shrugged, “The kid hasn’t left the room yet I don’t think. I’m surprised; he doesn’t normally sleep this late.” It was safe to say that Ace didn’t really care.

Blitz shot Ace a glare. “Do you even have the capacity to be worried?”

Ace grinned at his  _ cyare _ . “Nope. Unless he’s dying or dead, it’s not my problem.”

Blitz rolled his eyes, scooting away from Ace. “I can’t believe I’m dating an asshole with no compassion for his little brother.”

Ace pushed on Blitz’s shoulder. “I love the kid, but the pup can take care of himself. Don’t worry about it.”

Boost jumped in with an evil grin, “Unless he is somehow completely unconscious and seizing and choking on his own vomit as we speak because he can’t turn over.”

Blitz looked at his brother, horrified. “Not helping Boost!”

Everyone laughed, even Arks cracked a smile. Everyone went back to their business, falling into a slightly awkward silence. Ace had pulled Blitz closer, who was pouting at his boyfriend. Ace gave him a quick kiss. The pout disappeared. Ace smirked in satisfaction. 

Blitz kept shifting, however, worried about his baby brother. Comet wasn’t normally like this; he would always get up with the others or come to the rec room a few minutes after them. Blitz kept trying to catch his eldest brother’s eyes, to no avail, wanting him to show a little bit of concern.

Blitz growled in frustration, giving up, “FINE!  _ I’ll _ go check on him! Gods forbid that you guys care,” he twisted himself out of Ace’s arms while his boyfriend was laughing with the others again. Blitz shook his head in disbelief at his brothers as he stomped to the bunk room.

Blitz slowed down once he reached the doors. The motion sensors above the doors sensed his movement and activated the doors, swinging them open. The room was dark since everyone had left it. Blitz, with a heavy sigh, walked into the room and made his way over to Comet’s bunk bed near the back of the room. The young trooper was curled up on his side, facing the wall. Blitz had no way of getting a good look at his face from this angle so he tapped the kid’s shoulder twice.

“Hey kiddo, it’s time to wake up,” Blitz whispered, hand lowering. 

Comet didn’t react at all. Blitz shifted on his feet and coughed. “Kid, it’s time to get up. Don’t make me say it again. Come on.”

Again, Comet didn’t react.  _ The hell? Is something wrong?  _ A sickly croak of some kind mixed with a groan echoed from Comet. The kid coughed a couple of times, raising his fist to his lips to cover his mouth, keeping himself from sending germs into the air. 

_ Oh crap. That doesn’t sound good.  _ Blitz crouched down beside the bed and gently put a bit more pressure on Comet’s shoulder. Blitz turned the kid over so he was facing him and gasped.

“Oh kiddo,” Blitz frowned. 

Comet looked absolutely horrid. A bit paler than usual. His skin felt a tiny bit warmer too. Irritated red eyes, wet with tears, looked over at Blitz. Blitz could literally see the small tremors ride up and down the poor kid’s body. Comet coughed again, jerking up to cover his mouth again.

After he finished, he lowered his hand to the blankets with an odd thump. “D-Domf f-f-ff-eel good,” he mumbled tiredly, sniffling at the end.

“Aw man, Comet? Are you sick?”

“i-I think so,” Comet groaned.

“Crap.” Blitz raised his hand and placed it on top of Comet’s pale and sweaty forehead with a ‘plat.’ They sat in silence for a couple of seconds. Not a word was spoken. Blitz took his hand away, only to hear a whimper from Comet. “What’s wrong?” he asked.

_ “F-feels good,” _ Comet shuttered, leaning toward Blitz.

Blitz’s eyes widened in realization. He placed his hand back on Comet’s forehead and sighed, “Okay kiddo. I’m going to go get Wolffe and Arks, they’ll know what to do.” Blitz stood up with a level of urgency, only to be stopped by Comet’s trembling hand around his wrist.

“N-no! D-don’t, please. Cold,” Comet coughed loudly, hacking. Blitz grimaced, then gave in. He sat right back down at Comet’s side and offered a smile.

“Okay okay. I’ll comm them instead.” Blitz raised his left wrist, not in Comet’s grasp, up to his mouth and pressed the button on the side. “Hey Wolffe, something’s up with the kid. I think he’s sick.”

There was this shuffling sound crackling through the receiver. Then a voice came through, one that made Comet shift in sickly anticipation, “Arks and I are coming.” Wolffe alerted Blitz.

Blitz nodded to himself and hung up, looking up at Comet. Comet peeked at him through the blankets like a little Tooka kitten. Blitz smirked. 

“Yeah?”

“Can I have some water?” Comet gulped, discontent with the scratchiness in his throat

“Yeah, after Arks and Wolffe come in,” Blitz answered, ruffling Comet’s hair. Comet smiled happily and sank back into his pillow.

The door to the bunks opened with an airy woosh, letting Wolffe and their medic, Arks, into the room. The two men glanced to their right and headed to the back of the room, footsteps tapping quietly against the metal floor. Blitz looked over his shoulder and stood up. Comet made a quiet sound of protest. Blitz shushed him, winking before turning to Wolffe and their medic.

“Found him like this, tired, low-grade fever, shivers, and coughs,” Blitz listed the symptoms he noticed since he walked into the room to check on Comet. “Possibly a sore throat too,” he added.

Wolffe nodded and walked around Blitz. Arks brought out the scanner that he always carried with him just in case of emergencies and hovered it over Comet’s forehead. Comet watched him with emotionless eyes. The white and black device beeped twice, indicating that it was finished. Arks tilted the device screen a bit towards him and hummed.

“ _ Interesting _ ,” Arks signed.

Wolffe raised an eyebrow. “What?”

Arks stared at the device, then gestured to the screen.  _ “Blitz is right. Low-grade fever.” _

Blitz scoffed, looking off to the side. “Of course I am right! You thought I was lying?”

“Well, to be fair, you and Comet do tend to lie so then he doesn’t have to get out of the bed early,” Wolffe defended their reasoning why they would think this in the first place.

Comet made this snort-cough hybrid sound. Blitz rolled his eyes and glared at Wolffe. 

“That’s not true, but whatever,” Blitz muttered under his breath.

Arks ignored the two, completely focused on helping Comet.  _ “What hurts?” _ He asked.

Comet opened his mouth and tried to speak, but ended up groaning. A sad attempt to speak. Arks noted that in the back of his mind.

“Hm,” Arks made a very short hum at the back of his throat, which he always did whenever he was thinking. He lowered his temperature-checker and raised both hands, signing,  _ “Tell me in sign language if you can.” _

Comet sighed heavily. He didn’t usually use sign language often, only when necessary, which it seemed now was one of those inconvenient times.

Comet slowly raised his right hand and tried his best.  _ “Throat.”  _ His hand shook with the effort.  _ “Chest. My eyes.” _

Arks nodded, noting all of this.  _ It can’t be allergies, that’s impossible,  _ he thought. Arks raised his two hands and asked, “ _ Anything else or is that it?” _

_ “That’s it.”  _ Comet signed back, panting. He quickly raised back up his arm and shivered, freezing up in anticipation. 

Arks stared at him, worrying silently. Wolffe and Blitz looked over as well. Comet’s head tipped back, eyes squeezed shut, and then he managed to hold back a nasty sneeze. Blitz, Wolffe, and Arks all calmed down, relaxing. 

Arks turned to Wolffe and Blitz.  _ “Blitz, can you get some water for him?”  _ Blitz nodded and walked into the attached ‘fresher. Arks looked at Wolffe and raised his hands.  _ “He just has a cold, that’s all. It should go away in a couple of days. He will be fine.” _

Wolffe exhaled in relief, looking down at the youngest of their squad. 

“Don’t worry Comet. We’ll take care of ya,” Wolffe reassured him with a small smile. Comet looked up at him and shivered.

“Okay.”

Blitz exited the ‘fresher just as Arks clipped the thermometer device on the side of his hip and cocked his head to the side, raising an eyebrow; a body language that everyone was familiar with. Blitz stood behind Arks and Wolffe and chuckled, understanding what Arks was questioning without even verbally asking.

“Yeah Arks, go to the medbay and get a few things.” Wolffe allowed. “And Comet, you said your throat hurts?” he asked the younger one. Comet nodded.

“Okay, get some cold medicine and washcloths.” Wolffe looked at Arks with a side glance, empty white eye staring at him.

Arks nodded once and left the room. Wolffe walked over to the corner of the room and grabbed the chair, then dragged it over to the side of the bed. Blitz handed the cup of water to the younger boy and backed up. Comet, with the help of Wolffe, sat up, dragging the blanket up to tuck it against his chest. He tipped his head back and closed his eyes when the cool water slid down his parched throat.

Comet’s eyes bulged suddenly and he leaned forward, coughing. Must’ve taken it down the wrong pipe. Wolffe reached over and patted his back.

“It’s alright, vod’ika. Take it slow next time,” Wolffe cooed. 

Comet took much slower sips next time, not wanting to choke again because it irritated his already sore throat. After he was finished he handed the cup to Blitz who walked out of the room but not before ruffling Comet’s dark hair once more. Comet glared murderously at his brother but was too tired and in too much pain to do anything about it.

The teenager struggled a little bit as he laid back down so he could be comfortable. He felt Wolffe sit on the edge of the bed, his weight compressing the bed. Comet pulled the sheets up to his chin, wanting to hide in them forever.

Wolffe ran a cool hand through Comet’s hair, smiling when he heard Comet sigh in relief. Wolffe had a thought cross his mind. Usually, when Comet was sick, the teenager would mention it to either Arks or Wolffe but that wasn’t the case this time.

“Comet, how long have you been feeling sick?” Wolffe gently asked.

Comet shrugged, raising his hands to sign to his brother,  _ “Last night.” _

Wolffe sighed, but he didn’t take his hand off of Comet’s head. “Why didn’t you tell one of us?” Comet curled up, detecting a disappointed tone in Wolffe’s voice.

“I’m not mad, Comet. Just wondering,” Wolffe reassured him softly.

_ “It wasn’t that bad. Only felt a little off.” _ Comet’s sign language was a little hesitant and broken but he got his point across. 

“Well, next time, just tell me. Because you’re going to suffer a little bit today.”

Comet groaned at his brother’s tease. Wolffe chuckled, smile fading a little bit when Comet started coughing harshly. It didn’t sound pretty. Wolffe gently pulled Comet into a sitting position, running a hand in a spiral motion over Comet’s back.

Comet eventually stopped coughing but the pain lingered. He let out a few whimpers of pain, hand lightly gripping his throat. Wolffe’s hand slid from his back to his nape.  _ This is going to be a long day _ .

Wolffe sat closer to Comet. “Just try to relax, kid.”

The door opened once again and Blitz re-entered the room. “Arks should be back in a minute. He went back to grab a couple more doses of meds for Comet.”

Comet whined lightly again, leaning to rest on Wolffe's shoulder. Wolffe sighed in sympathy for his brother because he knew what he was about to say would make Comet not super happy. “I know you probably don’t want to do this, but you need to eat.”

Comet groaned, lightly hitting Wolffe’s arm in retaliation. Blitz snickered while Wolffe rolled his eyes at Comet’s over-dramatic reaction. “I know, Comet, but you need food. Like soon. So you can either eat it yourself or I shove it down your throat.”

Comet pulled back and gave Wolffe his infamous puppy eyes. Wolffe glared at him, not ready to back down easily. Blitz saw and snorted, “Comet, no puppy eyes.”

Comet’s golden eyes turned to Blitz’s in betrayal; Blitz was always the one to let him get away with things if he pulled the ‘puppy eyes’ card.

“Wolffe is right, you need to eat something. You’ll feel worse if you don't eat. Trust me, I know,” Blitz argued with him. Comet deflated and flopped back down on the bed. “Fine,” He whispered.

Wolffe grinned in victory. “Good boy.”

Comet glared at him but it slipped off when Wolffe resumed his comforting motions in his hair. All three of the men chuckled.

“I hope you know, I will use this as blackmail if you disobey my orders,” Wolffe threatened lightly.

_ “No, you won’t,”  _ Comet signed.

Wolffe growled, “Bet.”

Comet giggled to himself and sank against his eldest brother’s side, starting to feel sleepy again. Blitz whispered something to Wolffe, then left the room. Wolffe continued to rub Comet’s back, massaging small sections, like; his shoulder blades, collarbone, and right in the center of his spine. Comet smiled, relaxing into his touch just as the door wooshed back open again. 

“Where is he?!” Someone, that someone being Ace, screeched, dashing into the room at top speed. Behind him, he brought an army of worried older brothers.

A vein bulged on the side of Wolffe’s forehead. He stood up with a small sigh, turning his back to Comet to block him from view. The others halted in front of Wolffe, peering down at the small one in the bed.

“Blitz told us he was sick!” Boost pointed a finger at Wolffe while simultaneously jabbing his opposite thumb back at Blitz who stood next to Ace.

“Is he okay?”Ace asked, worrying his bottom lip.

Wolffe smiled in amusement. “Yes, yes, he’s fine. Just a small cold. That’s all.”

The sounds of various relieved exhales reached Comet’s red ear. He turned onto his side and peeked up at them all.

“Hi,” He peeped.

Many pairs of eyes flicked in his direction. Comet coughed into his arm and then snuggled it back under the blankets. Wolffe shifted out of the way so their brothers could all stand or crouch down next to the bed, not too close though, as recommended by Wolffe.

“Comet!” Boost spoke first. Comet flinched at his loud voice but relaxed soon after. “How are you feeling?”

Feeling his throat itch again, Comet gave up on trying to whisper.  _ “Fine. Throat hurts though. A bit hot too.” _

Boost and the others nodded in understanding. “Okay, okay. We’ll help anyway we can, right brothers?” Boost egged them on, looking over his shoulder to the rest of their squad. Boost got a bunch of nods in agreement. They are determined to help their youngest. Boost turned back to Comet and asked, “What do you need?”

Comet thought for a second, then reluctantly took his hands out from under the blankets.  _ “I am cold.” _

Ace stood up and said, “I got it.” before leaving the room.

_ “My throat is scratchy.”  _ Blitz picked Comet’s cup off the floor and nodded, leaving the room once again to get him that much-needed drink.

Boost and Ace both jumped at the chance to give aid to Comet in any way. They pushed and shoved at one another as they ran out of the room yelling, “I’ll get blankets!!” “No, I will!”

Comet smiled to himself and looked at Wolffe.  _ “Are they okay, sir?” _

Wolffe chuckled with that deep rumble that always calmed a brother down. “They are just worried about ya, that’s all.  _ Di’kuts _ I say. Heh heh. Come on now, Com’. Get under the blankets and stay warm for me.”

“Okayyy,” Comet rasped.

Not even 25 seconds later Comet’s brothers returned to the room with various items that they’ve snatched from around the rec room. Ace tossed two blankets onto the bed and then ran into the back of the barracks to grab  _ more blankets.  _ Boost held three pillows in his grasp against his chest and threw those onto Comet as well. Wolffe watched silently from the bunk bed across from Comet's. Comet looked at Wolffe helplessly, having become a pillow-blanket monster. Wolffe shrugged with a smirk gracing his facial features.

Blitz walked back into the room and calmly handed the water to Comet after Ace placed one more blanket at the foot of the bed. Comet thanked all three of them with a cute giggle and drank the precious liquid, sighing in satisfaction once he was done. 

“Thanks, guys.” Comet smiled at them.

Boost and Ace grinned. Blitz said, “You’re welcome, kid.”

The door opened with a silent whoosh, grabbing everyone’s attention. Arks returned with the cold medicine and a few washcloths. He blinked at the sight of multiple blankets on Comet’s bed or on him and their brothers scattered around. The medic shook his head and continued his path to his little brother. Comet gave him a small smile, knowing that he wasn’t going to enjoy Arks giving him the medication, but he would have to suck it up.

Arks uncapped the medication, pouring slowly into a small cup. The thick, red medicine was filled to the middle line of the tiny cup, and Comet almost gagged right there; he hated cold medicine with his whole heart.

Arks carefully gave the cup to the sick teenager, giving him a pointed look before lifting his hands to sign, “ _ Do not spit this out. Swallow it or I will make you take it again.” _

Comet pouted at him. “I’m not a child, Arks.”

The others glanced at the teenager, all having challenging looks on the faces. “Yeah, sure you’re not,” Sinker snorted. 

Comet distastefully looked at the medication. He brought the cup close to his lips, hesitating, before tipping the whole thing into his mouth, swallowing the ruby liquid in an uncomfortable five seconds. He blindly handed the cup back to Arks and took the water from Blitz to wash it down and rid himself of the extra saliva filling his mouth. Comet downed the rest of the water, thankfully not choking on it. Arks cracked a smirk, enjoying Comet’s discomfort just a small bit.

Comet groaned after taking the medicine and ran a hand through his hair. Wolffe put a concerned hand on Comet’s shoulder. “You okay, kid?”

Comet moaned in pain, falling back onto the pillow once again. Ace put a hand on his shoulder blades, thumb stroking lightly. 

“My whole body hurts,” Comet whined to his brothers, shutting his eyes tightly. The others looked to Arks in question, hoping the medic could help their baby brother.

Arks’ was sympathetic when he started signing,  _ “There’s not much I can do. The medicine might help a little bit, but as I said, I can’t do anything else.” _

“There’s  _ nothing _ we can do?” Sinker asked for clarification, willing to do anything.

Arks studied him, then studied Comet for a moment before lifting his hands,  _ “Unless we stick him under cold water for fifteen minutes. Or hot water.” _

Comet immediately shook his head, not wanting to deal with extreme temperatures. He was already cold one minute then hot another. He nuzzled closer to Wolffe, who's hand was a comforting weight in his hair. He dozed lightly, tuning out his brother’s conversations, still feeling Wolffe’s fingers twist and pull his dark hair softly. He made a soft noise as he was pulled closer to one of his brothers, head laying in their lap. 

“Comet, do you want to eat something?” Blitz asked, pulling Comet out of his subconscious. The teenager realized how hungry he was once the words left his brother’s mouth. He nodded into the lap of whichever brother had pulled him close.

“Okay, we’ll get you some food, then you can sleep, okay?” Blitz asked, rubbing the length of Comet’s arm while he waited for his answer.

“Sure,” Comet mumbled, not opening his eyes. 

Blitz nudged his boyfriend’s shoulder. “Your turn.”

Ace rolled his golden orbs but reluctantly stood up from their huddle. When Ace was out of the room, Sinker pulled the blankets tighter around Comet when he shivered. Sinker was the one that the teenager had latched onto, having sleepily moved closer to the trooper. Sinker just pulled his head into his lap. 

Arks got up, grabbing one of the washcloths while signing quickly,  _ “I’m going to get these wet.” _

The others nodded mutely, turning their attention to the sleepy teenager in Sinker’s lap. Comet had curled up even more like a puppy (which was fitting for the pup of the Wolfpack), his tousled hair falling in front of his eyes.

“He’s adorable when he’s tired,” Boost commented. If Comet heard them he didn’t show it; he was too tired to care.

“If only he could stay this cute when he’s awake. The kid can be sassy when he wants to be,” Ace snarkily responded, but still looked at the kid with fondness. 

“Nah, Zeke’s sassier,” Wolffe snorted a laugh.

Ace shrugged. “You have a point there. But Comet does have a mouth on him.”

“I’m still awake, you know?” Comet muttered.

“We know,” they all responded in unison. 

* * *

An hour flew by like it was nothing. One minute Comet was on his side, then on his back. Then a few minutes after that he was on his front, completely knocked out. Every so often a cool washcloth would find itself on top of his clammy forehead, but it never woke him up. Two hours later, Comet heard small whispers nearby, soft and full of concern. Comet didn’t dare open his eyes until a comforting, warm hand touched his forehead. He opened his eyes and smiled at the boy that graced him with his gentle presence.

“Tup,” Comet whispered, smiling. Tup smiled back, aura vibrating with positive energy. He was an angel, just sitting on the edge of the bed where Comet left lots of space for him to take up. “What...what are you doing here?”

“I heard you weren’t feeling well, so I came to visit,” Tup explained his reasoning for being there.

Comet scooted closer and closer until his head laid on top of Tup’s lap. “Oh, okay. I missed you.” Comet tensed up and then turned his face into Tup’s thigh, coughing against his armor plates. “Ugh.” 

“Poor baby. Here, let me take off my armor, and then I’ll get under the blankets with you.” Tup offered to bring some warmth and comfort to Comet.

“Oh, that would be wonderful, dearest.”

Tup stood up straight and started to shrug off his armor plates bit by bit. The wolfpack members who still remained in the room to watch over their youngest turned their eyes away, not wanting to watch Tup de-armor, even though he’s not getting naked...and they all kind of have the same...well, to explain better, Comet and Wolffe have had this conversation multiple times before, in the past, all a result of Comet’s innocent curiosity, and Comet’s older brothers took the opportunity to brag about their kriffing... _ sizes,  _ and point out the various differences they all had in  _ various _ places...down south. The ‘lesson’, let’s call it that, really scarred Comet for life, but he was going to figure that out one way or another anyway, like in the ‘fresher shower room, unlike poor Blitz with Boost, Comet got lucky and actually felt blessed afterward that he wasn’t Blitz 2.0.

Comet felt the bed dip under the extra weight, then he felt two warm arms wrap around his waist, bringing him backward until he was pressed up against Tup’s chest. Comet felt weird in this position because he usually ‘big spooned,’ but now he was little spooning this shit all the way. Guess there was a first for everything, right?

“I am _ backkkk~”  _ Ace sang from the entrance to the barracks. He gracefully waltzed over with a bowl of steaming hot soup. Ace stopped in the middle of the room, staring at everyone who stared back at him, even Tup and Comet stared at him.

“What?” Ace blinked.

“Nothing,” Tup chuckled. Ace gasped sharply. 

“What? When did  _ you  _ get here?!” He pointed at the youngest of the 501st.

Tup shrugged. “Like...four minutes ago. You’re slow.”

Wolffe snorted loudly. Comet trembled against Tup’s chest, holding in his laughter, but also shivering.

Ace made an exaggerated laugh, then fixed Tup with a serious fucking face. “Do you want the soup or nah, bro? Just say when and I’ll feed it to Blitz.”

“Don’t you kriffing dare.” Blitz glared at his cyare.

Comet reached out toward the bottom of the top bunk and made grabby hands at the air.  _ “Sooooooooouuuuuuppp~” _ He groaned loudly.

Tup sat up and glared at the couple yapping away at one another. “Hey! Care to help out and stop letting the soup get cold.”

Ace flinched and nodded apologetically. “Sorry sorry. Here I come. I made this beautiful delicacy myself. I call it-” Ace handed the bowl to Tup and grinned happily. “Kriffing bone broth man, and I dabbed a piece of parsley in it to make it look fancy.” 

Comet shivered harder, laughing into Tup’s left shoulder. “You are the best  _ Aceee~” _

Ace was getting the hang of being a good older brother,  _ so good,  _ in fact, that he decided to be cheesy about it. “You’re welcome, Comet! You know, I’d even say this soup is ‘out-of-this-world.’”

Comet almost dropped the bowl on himself. Quite literally. Comet leaned forward and started coughing and laughing at the same time. Tears spilled down his cheeks from his already red eyes. And his nose was leaking boogers. Ew. Wolffe leaned against a bedpost and laughed wolfishly with Comet. Blitz and Boost were dying on the floor. Tup held in his laughter because Comet was coughing into the air. He didn’t want to get sick too. Sinker was already dead on the floor, figurative X’s over both eyes. And Ace was enjoying every second of this.

“I can’t  _ breatheeee~” _ Comet wheezed, wiping the tears from his eyes. A giant lopsided grin still plastered onto his face. He took a couple of shaky breaths, still wanting to bust out laughing. Tup snickered every once and awhile, taking the bowl from Ace’s hands. Comet eventually stopped laughing, and smiled, leaning on Tup’s side. 

“You ready to eat now?” Tup asked. Comet nodded and happily took the bowl from his boyfriend. Comet moaned in bliss when the warm liquid soothed his sore throat. Tup chuckled, slowly brushing Comet’s hair with his fingers. Comet practically inhaled the soup as it was gone within five minutes.

“Looks like someone was hungry,” Wolffe commented from the foot of Comet’s bed. “Makes sense, but be careful or you might get fat,” he joked.

Comet pouted, “Leave me alone,  _ ori’vod _ .”

Wolffe laughed as Comet retreated into Tup’s chest. Tup chuckled, dropping a kiss to Comet’s head. Comet cuddled closer to the teenager, shivering as goosebumps popped up, spreading across his skin.

“Aww, are you cold baby?” Tup asked, rubbing a hand over Comet’s arms. Comet groaned and nodded into Tup’s neck. Blitz reached to the foot of the bed and passed an extra blanket to the youngest teenager. Tup smiled gratefully as he took it and turned Comet around in his arms. He carefully bundled Comet up in the blanket before laying him down on his side again. Then Tup slid down with him, cradling him close to his chest. 

“Can I do anything for you, Com’ika?” Tup asked softly in his ear. 

The pup of the Wolfpack shook his head, tucking himself against his boyfriend’s chest. “Just hold me and I’ll be good.”

Tup’s heart melted at the soft tone of his boyfriend’s rough voice. He obliged him and wrapped his arms around Comet’s large frame, pillowing Comet’s head on his chest, breathing slowly.

They watched as the others made conversation, mostly teasing, but sometimes it was nice words coming out of their mouths. Comet would chuckle every once and in a while but he was really drained of his energy for the most part. He would close his eyes for a few minutes then they would open to concentrate on the conversation again.

He noticed Tup stayed silent, watching him like a hawk. Comet sighed happily, loving his boyfriend  _ even _ more. Tup was always so attentive to him, even when Comet wasn’t sick or hurt. The 501st teenager would always check in on him even if nothing seemed wrong, wanting to make sure his boyfriend was okay. Comet couldn’t imagine leaving Tup. Ever.

Tup’s soft hands were like magic in his hair, like delicate, nimble fingers striking the most sensitive strings on a golden harp, pulling or brushing in just the right place to make him relax against him. He guessed it was because Tup was the only one with long hair in the 501st and his older brothers would run their fingers through his hair a lot; now Tup had the technique down.

“You’re magical,” Comet mumbled low in his throat, feeling Tup’s chest move as he chuckled. “Like an angel.”

“I know,” Tup responded.

Comet laid with Tup for a little longer before he started to get hot. He lazily kicked the blankets off of himself, hugging Tup’s arm like it was his anchor. Comet started drawing circles and different shapes on Tup’s side, giggling when Tup would shiver whenever his fingers ran over a certain part. 

Ten minutes later, Comet was getting a tiny bit frustrated because he was getting restless, his ADHD was kicking in.

_ “Arksssss, _ can I  _ pleaseeee  _ get up,” Comet begged his older brother. Arks glared at him.  _ “No way. Your ass is staying in this bed,”  _ He signed stiffly.

Comet gave him the puppy eyes again, pushing his luck with the medic. Arks cocked one eyebrow slightly, crossing his arms. Comet deflated and pouted, shooting Arks sad, disappointed eyes.

“How about we play sabacc? So the kid can stop complaining,” Ace suggested. Comet childishly stuck his tongue out at his brother. 

Comet let Ace set up and deal the cards, and turned to his boyfriend. “You going to play a round or two?”

Tup shrugged, kissing Comet’s slightly warm forehead. “Why not?”

Comet picked up his hand of cards, running his eyes over them.  _ Not a horrible set _ . He glanced at Tup from the corner of his eyes, seeing a blank look on his face, but Tup winked at him when they met eyes. 

Comet went first, placing a card down. Tup observed his hand, then the card in front of him before picking one up from a different pile.

“Nothing to work with, kid?” Wolffe gave Tup a wolfish grin.

Tup smirked back. “We’ll see.”

After a couple more rounds, it was Comet’s turn again, but he couldn’t do anything so he picked up a card. Tup put one of his cards down and Comet had to do a double-take. “Woah, Woah, Woah, since when do you have two cards left?”

Tup innocently shrugged, dropping his head on Comet’s shoulder. “Eyes on your own cards.”

Within two turns, Tup won the game.

“Motherfucker, we just got beat by a baby,” Ace cursed.

Tup laughed, leaning on Comet’s side, “You’re like four years older than me. If I’m a baby, you are too.”

Blitz rocked his shoulder against Ace’s. “He’s got you there, Ace’ika.”

Tup stayed out the next round and pulled Comet against his side. He would whisper in his ear from time to time, smiling as he did so.

“You better not be helping him cheat, Tup!” Boost called out, making both the teenagers look at him. 

Tup grinned innocently but it had something else in it, “I would  _ never _ do that.”

Comet chuckled; yes, Tup may have been helping him out that round. Tup would point out little things Comet should do, or just talk in general. 

The second round ended quickly with Sinker winning.

“I am not leaving this bed until I win one round,” Blitz muttered to the others, shuffling the cards. Comet chuckled, hugging Tup’s arm again.

Tup looked down once pressure was added to his arm. He found his boyfriend watching Blitz shuffle and deal, hugging his arm gently like a small kid. “You’re so adorable and cuddly when you’re sick,” Tup cooed teasingly.

Comet glared at his boyfriend but then he nuzzled closer to him. Tup smiled and brushed Comet’s hair out of his eyes. “That’s what I thought.”

Comet was about to take his turn when he felt an itchy sensation in the back of his throat. It started off as a small prickly feeling in his chest, but then it grew and grew until it became unbearable. Comet realized what was coming and tensed up, muscles pulling taught. Everyone stopped conversing with one another to look over at Comet, wondering what was wrong.

“Babe, what’s wrong?” Tup asked. 

The heavy feeling in Comet’s chest felt like gathered heat. Like a balloon got blown up with helium, but now all that pressure had to get let out quite viscously. Suddenly Comet tilted his head back and jerked forward with an explosive wet sneeze that rattled his entire body, startling all of his brothers and his boyfriend. 

“What the kriff!?” Boost shrieked, never having heard that kind of sound before. Of course, Blitz had heard a sneeze before, but this kind of sneeze sounded horrific and loud. Like a bomb went off or something.

That something was definitely leaking out of Comet’s nose now. He could feel it. Something slimy and wet.  _ Ugh.  _ He quickly held a hand under his nose and looked to Tup for assistance.

“Hahaha,” Tup let out a rich and amused chuckle, shaking his head as he looked to Arks, who was already digging in his pocket for a cloth. Tup took it from the medic and cleaned up Comet’s nose with it. 

Comet smiled at the endearing gesture. “Aw, thanks Tup. You’re so sweet.”

“Of course, love.” Tup smiled, standing up to throw the tissue away. 

Boost snickered, “Geez Comet. Could’ve given us a warning or somethin’.” Comet giggled lightly, leaning right back on Tup’s shoulder once he returned.

“Well, I didn’t have enough time to. Sorry.” Comet shrugged, smiling at his brother.

Boost made a ‘heh’ sound and looked back down at his cards, quickly dealing a card without thinking at all, and smiled. A couple of seconds later he suddenly facepalmed himself, frowning. “Oh fuck, I shouldn’t have done that.”

Comet nearly dropped his hand, laughing hard once again. The others snorted and laughed as Boost groaned and dropped his head into his hands. Comet could barely put his card down before laughing again. No one could stop laughing until it was Boost’s turn again.

Boost didn’t do anything for a long period of time, eyes flicking back and forth between his cards and to the two stacks in front of him.

“Can you do anything to win?” Sinker snickered.

Boost glared at him before whispering, “Nooo.”

Comet and the others busted out laughing as Boost put a card down. Comet had to wipe tears out of his eyes to even read his cards. He didn’t even know what card he put down, he just put it down so he could focus on laughing. After everyone had finished laughing, Comet had to stifle a yawn from his brothers, knowing they would make him sleep instead of playing the game. Tup noticed his yawn, the others did not. 

Four minutes later Tup won the game in a landslide. Boost threw his cards on the floor in front of him, stood up, and wandered off towards his bunk bed, muttering some curse words and promises to get back at Tup later for cheating. Although, Tup didn’t cheat this round so he laughed along with the others. He didn’t hear a peep from Comet so he looked down to check on him, discovering that he had fallen asleep against his left shoulder, drooling down his side.

_ “Awwwww~” _ Ace cooed, staring at the young couple.

Wolffe snickered, standing up with Arks, Ace, and Blitz, “Look at him, sleeping like a baby.”

“He is a baby, let’s not remind ourselves yet again tonight,” Blitz responded, smiling and leaning against Ace. Ace pressed a kiss to his cheek and gestured to their bunk bed in the back of the room next to Arks’ bunk. They left, leaving Wolffe and Arks with Tup and Comet. Tup squatted down and carefully placed his arms around his boyfriend, one arm behind his back while the other was around the bend of his knees. Then Tup lifted Comet up with his legs, grunting. Comet snuggled into the crook of his neck, smiling sleepily, never opening his dark eyes.

Tup straightened his back and kept Comet close to his chest as he carried him ‘bridal style’ toward the bed. He gently laid Comet down on the blankets and made sure the blankets were over his chest. Then Tup stared down at him, slowly reaching out to brush a finger down his cheek. Comet cooed in his sleep and nuzzled his finger.

Wolffe came up behind Tup and asked, “Are you staying with him?”

“Huh?” Tup turned around. “Oh, I mean, yes I can. I just thought that you guys would be busy tomorrow or something.”

“Oh no, we don’t have any upcoming missions for the time being. You can stay the night,” Wolffe reassured him, giving him permission to stay. Arks tapped Wolffe on the shoulder, hands flashing quickly. Tup missed it all. He blinked at the two older men.

Wolffe smiled at Arks and watched him walk away toward his own bed.

“What did he say?” Tup asked, smiling gently.

“Oh, he was saying he’s going to bed,” Wolffe smirked. “As am, I. Sleep well, kid.” Tup smiled at his boyfriend’s Commander.

“Night sir.”

Once Wolffe disappeared deeper into the darkroom, Tup laid himself out on the blankets beside Comet and stroked a finger down the side of his face again. Comet’s chest lifted and sank, gentle and comforting like the waves of an ocean. Tup bit his lower lip as he watched Comet’s chest lift and lower, lift and lower, an ongoing pattern that he couldn’t take his eyes off of. So he rested his head on Comet’s chest and sighed heavily. Every once in a while he would hear a wheeze or Comet would cough, but as the time passed his breathing became easier, smooth, and elegant once again. That’s when Tup knew he was getting better already.

With the final reassurance, Tup slowly closed his eyes, feeling the heavy sensation called sleep take over his body. Slowing down his breaths. Making his muscles become lax against Comet’s. And his breaths matched perfectly, or almost perfectly with Comet’s. Just like that, the lights in the room flickered off, shadowing each curled figure under the guise of an artificial night.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As promised, all fluff. The next chapter is really long (probably like 45 pages) so I'm going to split it in half. They will be posted soon, the first part will be posted in roughly two weeks.
> 
> Fun fact; this chapter really wasn't suppose to happen. I had mostly written a different chapter (the next two chapters) after I promised it would be all fluff thennnnn I realized there was mostly angst with little fluff. So, my editor (AngelWars) and I literally took turns writing in the doc, creating this chapter within like two-three days. I typically forget that I have to balance the chapters out, and I will try my best to get better at that. 😂
> 
> Beta reader/Editor-AngelWars (Ao3). This girl does so much fucking work and puts so much effort into it. She not only reads through these long chapters, but she will also call me out if shit doesn't make sense. She combs through these chapters so much and will fix/add things so you guys can understand it. Sometimes we spend hours just making sure everything is clear. She makes these scenes run so smoothly, and she also just makes my sentences sound pretty fricken good. I am so fucking grateful for her. 💙


	39. Chapter 39-Landslide (Pt. 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The five teenagers get stuck in a cave system; without their older brothers. Problems arise as time goes on, and the teenagers wonder if they won't make it out of this one.

The youngest of the Wolfpack entered the 501st’s barracks on Coruscant. He and the 104th were on leave after coming off of a two-week-long battle and was looking for his boyfriend. Instead, he found everyone but his boyfriend in the rec room. Rex and the others looked up when they heard the door open, smiling when they saw the familiar clone entering their barracks.

“Hey, Comet,” Hardcase greeted briefly before resuming his messing around with a datapad. 

“Hi. Where’s Tup?” Comet was curious why his boyfriend wasn’t with the others.

“He’s in the bunk room.” Rex pointed to the door. 

“Is he okay? Did something happen?” Comet frowned.

Fives sighed, “He’s fine, just a little out of it today.”

Comet shifted his weight. “Do you want me to take him out of the barracks? I’d probably have better luck than you two.”

Rex gave him a pleading look. “Please? I think we’ve pushed our luck for his quota of our affection this week.” The joke was dry but it made all of them chuckle.

“And nothing is wrong?” Comet asked incredulously again, not understanding why Tup was acting so distant. Fives and Rex shook their heads. Nothing unusual had happened to the teenager. 

“His last nightmare was last week, along with an anxiety attack. He’s probably just tired, Comet,” Fives softly answered, understanding why his kid’s boyfriend was worried as hell. Comet nodded to the ground; he wished he wasn’t so worried, but this was _Tup_. He’d be an asshole if he wasn’t concerned even a small bit.

“Alright, I’ll go drag him out of his room.” Comet opened the door to the bunk room, walking into the dimly lit room. Tup was laying on his side, facing the door, and his face was barely visible where it was tucked into the pillow.

Comet quietly walked to his bedside, making his presence known by sitting on the bunk before placing a hand on Tup’s shoulder. Tup’s eyes fluttered open, golden orbs snapping up to Comet’s. Tup grinned sleepily and gripped Comet’s hand to pull him down. Comet chuckled as he fell onto the bed, landing next to Tup with an ‘oomph’. Tup immediately moved close to Comet’s body, tucking his face into the older boy’s neck. 

“Whatcha doing down there?” Comet chuckled, looking down at his boyfriend. He felt Tup grin against his neck.

“What? I can’t hug my boyfriend?” Tup teased, leaning back to kiss Comet. 

“Well, I want to see my boyfriend’s beautiful eyes.” Comet leaned back to get a good look at ‘em. Tup fluttered his thick eyelashes at him. Comet hummed, staring into his fiery orbs, a close reminder, a beautiful comparison, with an ethereal sunset sky or an exploding star. “Gorgeous,” Comet whispered, grinning against Tup’s lips. Then Comet teasingly deepened the kiss. His hand started to drift down but Tup’s hand shot down to stop Comet’s movements.

Tup cocked an eyebrow at his boyfriend. “Com’ as much as I love you, I’d prefer to not have sex for the first time when my _buirs_ are in the other room.”

Comet groaned, playing along, “You are no funnnn.”

“Well, you aren’t going to be around to have fun with me if you are dead because Fives shot you,” Tup pointed out. He was right, Fives would lose his shit if he saw those two at it in the bunk room, unless Kix’s lecture would kill them first. Or Wolffe’s. Or Arks’. Or literally anyone.

Tup’s hair fell across his eyes, just barely. Comet brushed it back, tucking it behind his boyfriend’s ear. Tup blinked tiredly, leaning into Comet’s hand.

“You okay?”

Tup nodded, still resting his head on Comet’s hand. “Just tired.”

Comet pursed his lips a small bit. “Are you sleeping _any_ better?”

Tup gave him a so-so motion with his hand. “Sort of. Not really better, but I’m less exhausted and more like just tired.”

Comet hugged Tup closer, able to feel Tup’s heartbeat through his back. Calm and steady. Comet hated to bring up anything about Tup’s disorder at that moment but he was curious. “Fives said your last anxiety attack was last week. I’m surprised you haven’t had one since then.” 

Anyone could say that Comet was manipulating Tup by the tone of voice he was using but he really wasn’t; he was trying to get answers. He wasn’t pressuring Tup to say anything, Comet just said a sentence that might have more purpose than just saying it.

Tup made eye contact with Comet. He knew what his boyfriend was doing. He was trying to make him fess up to having an anxiety attack after the one last week. He wasn’t going to give in that easily. “Yeah, so am I.”

Comet had to give it to Tup, if he was lying, he was doing a damn good job. Tup made eye contact. His heartbeat didn’t speed up in fear; anyone would think he was telling the truth. But one thing set Comet off. Tup tore his gaze away just a little _too_ quickly.

Comet sighed. _Damn it Tup. Just tell me the truth every once in and a while._ Comet took two fingers and placed them under the younger boy’s chin. He directed Tup’s eyes back towards him. Tup knew he’d been caught and he tried to avoid eye contact. Comet tapped his chin and their eyes met. Golden met golden. “When was your _last_ anxiety attack?” Comet asked, choosing to make his tone lighter than he wanted it to be.

“Two days ago,” Tup answered honestly, keeping eye contact again.

“And the others just...what? Let it happen?” Comet asked, not trying to be too mean with the way he assumed it.

Tup fidgeted, playing with the sheets. “Well, they didn’t exactly…know.”

Comet sighed loudly, dropping his head to Tup’s, “Damn it, babe. Why didn’t you go get them?”

Tup scoffed lightly, “Well it wasn’t like I could move at that moment. I felt like if I moved I would’ve been-”

They were interrupted by the alarms blaring through the barracks. Tup and Comet both jumped at the loud sound. Tup moved further into Comet’s arms.

“Fucking fuck,” Comet cursed.

Tup chuckled, pulling himself out of the bed, already reaching for his armor. “You better get going, because Wolffe will beat your _shebs_ for being late to the briefing,” Tup advised the older boy.

Rex, Fives, Kix, Jesse, Echo, and Hardcase entered the barracks, heading to their own bunks to retrieve their armor. Comet slipped out the door but not before giving Tup a wink. Tup rolled his eyes playfully.

Tup and the rest of his squad hurried out of the barracks as quickly as possible and made their way towards the Resolute awaiting their return. Captain Rex was already standing at the top of the ramp. _Must’ve gotten a comm call from General Skywalker before the alarm went off,_ Tup thought as he climbed the ramp along with the others. The metal platform below was filled with scrambling brothers, dashing right and left to reach the many lowered ramps to get inside the Star Destroyer too.

“Finally. Come on, let’s go!” Rex yelled, waving his hand in front of him, leading their squad up to the main hangar bay. 

Torrent walked inside behind their Captain. Tup tucked his helmet under his armpit and against his right hip as they walked through the hangar. It was always loud in there. Filled with troopers busy at work, messing with machinery and saws, refilling T-6 shuttles, and ridding the AT-ATs of any dents left on ‘em. A gust of wind exploded from outside, turning Tup’s attention to behind him. The bay doors were closing. The lights above the heavy doors blare yellow, warning troopers to be cognizant of the closing doors so they wouldn’t get smushed. Fives bumped Tup in the side, tilting his head up towards Rex.

Rex stood in parade rest, observing his troopers as they grouped together to get their orders. Rex spoke once all of his troopers were within earshot “We are assisting the 91st, 327th, 104th, and the 212th. The planet we are going to is deep in the Outer Rim, under the attempt of Separatists’ control. Our mission is to protect the capital along with the other battalions.”

Some troopers nodded and others just stayed still. Rex continued, “We have no reinforcements at our disposal so we are on our own for help outside of the other 4 battalions. The terrain is very sketchy, so watch out for falling boulders or cliff sides; dismissed.”

Tup relaxed his shoulders from parade rest and looked over at Fives. 

“We’ll be staying in here for the ride, kiddo. So get comfortable.” Tup grimaces.

“Ugh, did Rex tell you that?”

Fives smirks. “Yep!” and walks away from the younger one. Tup watched him go and sulked, leaning back on a metal crate behind him. Commander Tano entered the hangar and waved over to Tup once she caught sight of him. She bounded over to Rex and started talking to him, probably about the mission. Tup tapped his feet on the floor and slid down to sit on the floor. He closed his eyes and listened to the banging of metal against metal, the various Torrent accents flitting about in the hangar bay, and footsteps walking past him.

A few minutes later, the familiar hum of the ship’s engines powering on rumbled through the floor paneling. Tup smiled to himself and sighed. _Well, here we go,_ he thought. The rumbling seemed to get louder and louder, but only for Tup, it seemed. His face scrunched up a bit as his chest tightened. Pre-battle jitters. Nothing to get worked up about. And just as quickly as the loud rumbling came, it disappeared, becoming a low hum that vibrated from the top of his head to the soles of his feet. Then there was silence. Silence. Silence. Silence.

  
  


Eerie silence overtook the atmosphere, thick as blood. Dark plumes of smoke and dirt cleared, wafting off into the sky, thinning. No longer did Tup hear the overwhelming silence or the low humming of the ship from earlier, but the soft clicking sounds of metal tapping against plastoid alloy armor and the nasty squelching sound that their boots made when sinking into the wet mud. He and Comet crossed the barren field, seeing Jake, Wooley, and Zeke in the distance. The oldest teenagers were conversing, making small talk as their Commanders and Jedi talked battle strategies for the next wave of Separatist forces.

Jake, Wooley, and Zeke smiled when they saw the other two approaching. Zeke playfully smacked Comet on the back while Tup sat on a boulder next to Jake. The shy, blue-eyed teenager gave Tup a gentle smile, leaning against his shoulder momentarily. Tup pushed half his weight on Jake’s right side also, basically hugging him without using his arms. Tup dropped his helmet on the ground along with the others.

“Is it just me or was this first wave just a little _too_ easy?” Zeke suddenly asked. 

Comet chuckled, shooting him an incredulous look. “You thought this was easy? Are you serious, Zeke?”

Zeke rolled his eyes. “Didn’t you hear any sarcasm in my statement, Comet? I said what I said.”

 _“And_ here we go,” Tup whispered to Jake who giggled in return. Comet and Zeke were two very stubborn troopers that didn’t back down easily.

“I was busting my ass trying to cover your battalion’s flank! You don’t get a say in if the first wave was ‘easy’ or not,” Comet disputed.

Zeke laughed loudly, “Oh really? You, Comet? Sure, you busted your ass, sure. Okay.”

Comet shoved his shoulder, making Zeke fall off his boulder and tumble to the dirt with a squawk. Everyone was silent for a pause then Comet broke down into hysterical laughter. He doubled over, laughing so hard that tears were coming to his eyes. Soon everyone joined in while Zeke pouted, still laying on the ground. 

Tup tried to stop laughing but he glanced at Comet who was struggling to breathe and ended up breaking out into full fits of laughter again. Wooley fumbled for Zeke’s hand, helping him up while laughing. 

Zeke sulked as he retook his seat. “Yeah, I have really _great_ friends.”

Tup went over and hugged Zeke, still trying to get air in his lungs. “Don’t worry we love you, Zeke.”

Zeke wrapped only one arm around him, his pout receding a little bit.

Comet broke the moment by suddenly picking Tup up from behind. Tup yelped but chuckled, being cradled by his boyfriend. 

“Com’ put me down,” Tup laughed. 

Comet pressed a kiss to the back of his head. “Nope. Not happening.”

The others smiled slightly at the couple, knowing that even if Tup wasn’t showing it, he was having a hard time. Whenever their battalions and the 501st were on Coruscant at the same time they would try to go and see him, to make sure he was doing okay. Tup would try to engage with them, but sometimes he just couldn’t do it. They didn’t blame him for that; they all had their respective disorders that messed them up some days. Zeke has a schizoaffective disorder, which has features of both bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. So, he can relate to not wanting to talk because he was in a depressed mood. But he knew Tup’s depressed mood had been stretching on for a month now.

Tup struggled a little more, not being able to slip away from his boyfriend’s grasp. Wooley watched with an analytical gaze. “Please don’t drop your boyfriend and crack his head open.”

Comet thought for a moment and realized the medic had a very good point. He groaned but slowly put Tup down. Once Tup’s feet were on the ground he started to walk away but he was quickly pulled into Comet’s lap. Tup huffed and crossed his arms. 

Comet jabbed him lightly in the side. “Don’t pout.”

“‘M not pouting.”

“Mhm, sure.”

Comet spun Tup in his lap, connecting their lips momentarily. Tup’s pouting face disappeared as he kissed his boyfriend back, pulling away a couple of seconds later, feeling as light as a balloon. Comet grinned. “See? No more pouting. So don’t pout again or I’ll have to kiss it right off your face.”

Tup let his lips twitch into a sly smile. “What if I want you to kiss me again?”

“Later, Tup’ika. When we don’t have an audience.”

Tup became aware that they were, in fact, not in a private setting.

“You know,” the oldest teen started, “You two have become the really affectionate couple that you swore you would never become.”

Jake reached to Zeke, smacking him upside the head. “Be nice.”The ground suddenly trembled, shaking underneath the teenagers’ feet. Even multiple klicks away, the Jedi and the Commanders’ felt it. Everyone braced themselves, trying not to fall over, bending their knees in preparation for the ground to possibly combust and split open. The tremors stopped. A Silence filled the air. That terrible silence that Tup always feared. Each teenager looked at one another, all wondering the same question.

“The hell was that?” Wolffe voiced the question that everyone was thinking. 

No one had an exact answer. But about one hundred feet away the answer was clear and visible. The unstable part of the cliffside _split_ at the verge, separating it from the more stable part. The crack stretched for miles and miles, going in two different directions at a terrifying speed on both sides of the narrow ravine, creating this odd cracking and roaring sound that shattered the silence. Tup would say that having sound again would be very comforting, but this kind of sound was just the opposite.

“Woah.” Rex gasped, looking around. The birds in the sky were flying away from where the god awful sound came from. Ahsoka swayed back and forth, trying to stabilize herself. The force was going crazy around her. She shook her head and blinked rapidly to clear her vision. Captain Rex looked down at her and asked, “You okay kid?”

Ahsoka nodded. “Yeah. That was..weird.”

There was a second rumble, louder, like; cymbals crashed to the floor in a cacophonic disaster. As quickly as it came it was gone. All of the clone Commanders and Captain Rex met eyes, fear swimming in them. They knew that that sound came from the direction the younger clones just went moments before. When their buckets snapped to the left to look back at that exact location, all five of the teenagers were gone.

“Do not tell me they just went over the cliff,” Cody pleaded quietly, horrified by the bigger problem here if they had gone over the edge. Ahsoka gasped in realization, remembering the younger clones were over there. They all rushed towards the cliffside and peered over the edge, seeing nothing but hundreds of feet of rock piled on each other. With the teenagers along with it.

_Moments before..._

Tup jumped from Comet’s lap after the ground stopped shaking. “We should move. Now.”

Comet stood up along with the others but it was a second too late. The cliffside started disappearing behind them.

“Oh sh-” They all tumbled down the cliffside along with sharp rocks and dirt, unable to stop their bodies from descending. They eventually rolled to the bottom. The dirt and sand that rolled down with the teenagers kind of broke their fall. A few smaller rocks and pebbles fell around them and on top of them from above.

Comet groaned as one of the rocks lands heavily on his knee. He looked up to see a thick, long slab of rock, flipping like a coin in the air, heading straight for Jake, ready to decapitate him. The Wolfpack teenager grabbed Jake and rolled to the other side, covering most of Jake’s leaner body. They braced themselves to be crushed but it never came. Comet peeked through his closed eyelids, not able to see anything. It was pitch black with only some light peeking through the cracks in the foundation of their rocky prison. The giant rock that was coming for them got lodged in between the slim ravine, horizontally. Comet had to yank his right leg out from under a rock that had crushed his knee. He winced at the pain that shot through his body.

Comet shakily braced his upper body with his forearm once he was free. Jake was a limp ball beside him. Comet immediately started praying that his older brother wasn’t…dead. Comet put a shaking hand on Jake’s side. Jake shuffled, moaning in pain, but pushed his back lightly into Comet’s chest, silently telling him he was alive. 

Comet sighed in relief, pulling Jake closer to him, just needing to know he was alive. Jake’s trembling hand found Comet’s and squeezed to the best of his ability. 

“Come on, we have to find the others.” Comet pushed himself up and Jake followed him. 

Comet took a step with his right leg and his knee buckled under his weight. Jake grabbed his bicep to break his fall. 

“Fuck!” Comet shouted, fire spreading through his knee.

Jake frowns in concern. “Are you okay?”

“Knee hurts like hell. But I’m fine.” Jake could tell that Comet was telling a half-truth but he didn’t want to argue with him. They walked down into an opening of a nearby cave. The sand slide leads right to it. _Oh. Jake and I must’ve tumbled off the slide just before the entrance. That means the others could be down here. I hope they are okay,_ Comet thinks. He ran his hand over the rough wall to keep their bearings, eyes still adjusting to the dark, following the voices coming from deeper into the tunnel. 

They regrouped with the others, who all seemed okay for the most part, minus their dented and dirtied up armor, Tup, Zeke, and Wooley were in a dome-like room with the cave entrance a few feet away from them. Tup caught sight of two banged-up figures stumbling down the sandy trail towards them. When Tup realized one of them was his boyfriend, he nearly tackled him into a hug. Comet hugged him just as tight. Tup pulled away after a moment when Jake swayed out of Comet’s arms, trying to avoid getting squashed by the couple, and right into Wooley’s arms. 

“Jake?” Wooley questioned when the younger teenager fell into his arms. Jake groaned, holding his head. 

“Head hurts,” He explained quietly. 

Wooley lifted his chin, grabbing a penlight from his belt, dancing with the devil because he knew Jake’s epilepsy was triggered by abnormal lights. “Look straight ahead, Jak’ika.”

Jake flinched as the light ran across his eyes, but stayed still. Wooley pulled away after a moment and frowned. “You have a concussion. You have to stay awake and tell me if you start to feel dizzy, okay?” Jake nodded, stepping away from the medic. 

Tup's right hand started to jerk back and forth as he observed the walls enclosed around them. They were stuck. In a tunnel. That most likely led to a cave system. The teenager huffed in disbelief and started pacing across the dusty floor.

Comet knew better than to stop Tup from trying to make sense of the situation through pacing. He sat on the ground next to Wooley and watched Tup out of the corner of his eye. He felt Jake drop his head onto his shoulder, curling closer to him. Comet let him, placing one of his arms over Jake’s shoulders. 

Meanwhile, Tup was freaking the fuck out. They were completely stuck without any way of communicating with their older brothers; he had already tried earlier. He had honestly thought Comet was killed from the fall. They had been right next to each other for a second and then separated the next. _If the fall didn’t kill us, something most definitely will in these tunnels._

Tup's breathing picked up to the point where he was close to completely hyperventilating, and Comet took that as his queue. Comet carefully stood up, letting Jake move before doing so. He quietly got in front of Tup’s path, taking his boyfriend’s slightly smaller hands in his hands. Tup tried to jerk out of his grasp, startled by his boyfriend getting in his way. 

Comet’s grip tightened. “Hey, hey, just me. Just me.”

Tup realized it was Comet but he didn’t calm down. “We’re going to die, we’re going to die-” He repeated this over and over again.

Comet sighed, heartbroken for his boyfriend. “Babe, we are not going to die. We’re going to be okay.”

Tup glared at Comet and snapped at him, “That’s what Riley and Peyton said when I told them I had a bad feeling about our first mission. They ended up dead. Don’t tell me we’re going to be okay when we obviously have no way out. Don’t do that to me.”

Comet winced when Tup mentioned his batchmates but he didn’t back down when Tup snapped at him. 

Tup’s brain caught up with his mouth and he tried to pull away from Comet. “I’m sorry...I didn’t mean it like that,” Tup apologized quietly, still breathing heavily.

Comet shook his head. “You’re just worried and I get that. But try not to bite my head off next time, okay?”

Tup let Comet pull him into a hug, feeling Comet’s strong arms squeeze him gently. 

“Just breathe, baby. Everything will be okay,” Comet cooed, rocking slightly. He wasn’t super concerned because this wasn’t a horrible anxiety attack, just a minor one that will stay in the back of Tup’s head for an hour or two. 

Tup nuzzled closer, wanting to cry so hard, but he wasn’t going to. He’d rather give Zeke fewer chances to tease him even if it wasn’t malicious. Comet had no idea how much his presence was helping Tup. In Tup’s mind, Comet could fix anything involving his depression and anxiety.

Comet leaned against the wall, still holding Tup close to his chest. He ran his hand over the back of Tup’s neck, muttering sweet nothings to his boyfriend. Even if it sounded a little messed up, he was glad Tup was kind of freaking out because he got to hold him and make sure he was alive. 

Tup sighed deeply a few minutes later, relaxing fully into Comet’s frame. Comet glanced down finally “You calm now?” Tup nodded and hugged Comet tighter.

While the two youngest teenagers were holding each other, the other teenagers hid their grins. They would never admit it out loud but they found Comet and Tup adorable. Zeke was about to speak up but Wooley pinched his arm, stopping him.

“Don’t you dare,” Wooley warned in a whisper, not wanting to know what might come out of his brother’s mouth. Zeke deflated but shut his mouth.

Comet, while still holding Tup, observed the tunnel, seeing only one path to take. But he had a feeling that they would eventually have to go over unknown terrain and obstacles to escape.

“We should probably start moving. Maybe we can find an opening in the tunnels.”

Zeke grinned. “Let’s get going then.”

* * *

“Are you _kriffing_ kidding me? How the hell do we get them out?” Rex rhetorically asked, not believing for a second that his teenager just went over the edge of a cliff. 

His squadmates observed the hundreds of rocks piled up. All the bad thoughts popped into their heads at once. Their kids could be severely hurt, or worse.

“I really hate to be the realistic one, but could they even survive that fall?” Ponds asked in a quiet voice, not really wanting anyone to answer. Mace stepped forward and put a gentle hand on his Commander’s shoulder. The other Jedi did the same with their respective Commanders—comforting them in different ways—as they tried to think of a solution to their problem. 

Plo reached out into the Force, willing for him to feel his son’s presence. After a few uneasy minutes of searching through thick rock, he felt five weak, fractured force signatures, and he recognized all of them. “They are alive. But a few of them seemed to be injured.”

“How bad are the injuries?” Aalya asked, knowing that Jake might have a harder time than the others if he is injured. She may not know about his epilepsy just yet but she knows enough.

Plo went silent for a few seconds, then turned back to the female Jedi. “Not serious enough for us to be concerned. But that can change in an instant,” Plo grimly reminded them. The others went silent, knowing that their Jedi could do oh but so much. 

Mace spoke next, “The best we can do for them is not to panic and try to give them time to get out on their own. They probably and hopefully have already found a cavern system underground. Even if they didn’t or there isn’t a cavern system down there, we’ll exhaust our remaining energy and won’t be able to get them out anyway. And Skywalker looks about ready to collapse at any second.” Mace tried to choose his words wisely, not wanting to give off the impression that he didn’t care for Zeke or the other teenagers; he was actually quite fond of them.

Anakin snapped up though, trying his best to not look tired. “I’m fine Master Windu.”

Windu rolled his eyes, making the clones chuckle. “For once in your life, Skywalker, don’t fight me. _Rest_. And take your Master with you.”

Obi-Wan gave Windu a betrayed look. “Mace, seriously? Need I remind you that I am an adult.”

“An adult that’s not older than me. And I have jurisdiction over this mission…so rest before I make you,” Mace fired back.

Anakin teased his former Master as they walked away. Thereafter, everyone dispersed except for Wolffe. The Commander stood close to the edge, begging any gods up there to give his kid the strength to crawl out of that rubble right now. But Comet didn’t. He felt someone stand behind him, but he didn’t acknowledge them. 

“You are no use to him standing at the edge, Wolffe.” His father’s voice was soft.

“They are defenseless down there, _buir._ And we can’t do anything about it,” Wolffe growled.

Plo sent reassuring waves to his son through the Force. Wolffe, not being force-sensitive himself, can’t reflect back through the Force. “I know, Wolffe. But you need to tell the Wolfpack what’s happened. They aren’t aware of it.”

Wolffe reluctantly nodded, taking one last longing look over the edge before turning his back to the cliff that took his little brothers underneath. _Please be okay. We can’t lose any of you._

Wolffe slowly walked back over to the others, expression and body position grim. The rest of the Commanders went with Wolffe, knowing that they would have to tell the others what happened. Coincidentally, all the Alpha Companies were grouped together, resting up until the second wave of the Separatist attacked or the Separatist retreated. 

Cody peeked a glance at his youngest squadmate, seeing Rex looking so dejected. Cody loved Wooley and the other four teenagers so much, but he understood that Rex was most likely in more pain than all of them. Rex was a lot closer to Tup than the other Commanders were with their own teenagers.

The troopers of Torrent, Ghost, the Wolfpack, Bly’s company, and Pond’s company all saw their Commanders (and Captain) approaching them solemnly and their mood immediately flattened. Fives looked to Rex questioningly, not understanding what’s going on, then he stared into Rex’s eyes a bit longer, searching, trying to understand better, and that’s when fear spread like infectious ice in his veins when the silent, devastating realization that their kid, _their kid,_ was not in step with him sets in. Rex took notice that Fives was looking directly at him and he immediately and subtly tore his gaze away, not being able to meet his searching eyes.

Bailey turned to Bly, not liking the way his Commander was looking at them. “Bly, where’s Jake and the others?”

“They’re not dead if that’s what you’re asking.” Bly wasn’t in the mood to be optimistic; he really wasn’t sure if the teenagers would make it out of this one.

Fives didn’t break his eye contact with Rex’s body. “What is he talking about?”

Rex lifted his eyes to Fives burning ones before turning them back down to the ground. He leaned closer to Cody and whispered to him in Mando’a, “ _I can’t tell him. He’ll freak and lose focus. I can’t do it, Codes.”_ Cody pressed his side against Rex’s. Rex’s statement had a lot of truth to it; Fives was an amazing ARC trooper, but once Tup becomes involved with something bad, he loses focus immediately and becomes reckless. 

_“You have to tell him, Rex’ika. He’ll be disappointed in you if you don’t,”_ Cody wisely advised his little brother. Cody saw the gears turning in Rex’s mind before he gave a minute nod.

_“Tell the others for me, please? I’ll tell him away from the others in case he explodes and makes a scene.”_

Cody nodded then lightly pushed his brother in the direction of Fives. Rex gestured for Fives to follow him away from the group. Fives automatically followed, eyes burning into Rex’s back. Rex walked about thirty feet away—maybe a bit too far, but it’s necessary in this case—before stopping. Fives roughly jerked Rex’s shoulder with his hand, making him face him.

“What the hell was Bly talking about? Where’s Tup?” 

Rex leveled him with a calm glance. “Before I tell you, you have to promise not to flip out and come up with a reckless plan.”

Fives glared at him lightly. “I can’t promise that, Rex. You know that I-”

Rex deflated again. “Fives, please,” he begged quietly, eyes fluttering closed.

Fives stopped his rant to see how upset and frazzled Rex was. He took a breath and nodded. “I promise.”

Rex nodded and tapped his thigh plate, and then he started to explain, “Tup and the others got caught in a landslide, and they’re stuck down in a ravine. We have no way to find them until they possibly get close enough to our location; unless they don’t...make it...” Rex said it all in one go, hoping it would make it easier, but it didn’t, because he trailed off at the end.

Fives took a small step back, looking at Rex in disbelief. “N-no.” Then he looked down at his feet.

Rex took one of his hands. “I’m sorry Fiv’ika.” His voice was soft and quiet, half waiting for his boyfriend to explode. He could feel Fives shaking, most of his body was vibrating.

When Fives looked at Rex again, his normally rebellious golden orbs were void of their vibrant and spirited color. “You’re lying. Please, tell me you’re lying.” Fives tried to move away from Rex but the Captain kept his grip. 

“I’m not lying _cyar’ika_. I’m so sorry.” Rex pulled Fives into a gentle hug. Fives latched onto him, hiding his face into Rex’s neck. Rex held him tight, running a gloved hand through his slightly dirty hair.

“We don’t even know if they’ll survive?” Fives asked into the neck of Rex’s blacks. 

Rex shook his head. “No, Fiv’ika. We don’t even have a general location on their position.”

Fives burrowed deeper into Rex’s frame. “We can’t lose any of them. We can’t lose _him_.” Rex felt tears drip onto his shoulder. He rocked slightly and looked over Fives’ shoulder to the others. It seemed like Cody just broke the news to the others because Bailey, Echo, and a couple of others latched onto one another.

“I know, _cyar’ika_. I will do everything I can to find them. But there isn’t much I can do,” Rex said gently.

Fives heard the hidden message in Rex’s statement. “What are you saying, Rex?”

Rex hesitated before continuing, “I don’t know if it’ll be enough.”

“So you’re saying that I have to expect the worst?”

Rex sighed, “I am not saying that, Fiv’ika. I'm just saying...that things might not go the way we want it to.” Rex was about to say something else, but he was cut off by a soft sob. Rex looked down and saw and felt Fives’ shoulders shake with suppressed sobs. Fives’ knees buckled from underneath him but Rex caught him and cradled him as they both sank to the ground.

“ _Udesii, Udesii. I’ve got you, Fives. Everything will be okay,”_ Rex cooed.

Fives shook his head. _“We won’t be fine if Tup dies. You know that. We would both do something stupid that’ll get ourselves killed if it means saving Tup.”_

Rex's heart stopped. He _hated_ it when Fives talked like that. _“Don’t you dare. Don’t. I can’t lose both of you.”_

Rex pulled Fives back to look him in the eye. Fives’ eyes were bloodshot to a minimum but still red. The Captain could see the strife in Fives’ eyes, which were glued to the ground. Rex cupped Fives’ left cheek, tilting his chin up. 

“No matter what happens,” Rex started. “You will _not_ leave me. Don’t even think about it. If we lose Tup, yes, we will be different people, but that is the exact reason we both have to stay alive. To be there for each other and the others.” Rex gestured to their brothers behind Fives.

“You can’t let Echo be the last domino standing,” Rex added, tucking the top of Fives’ head under his chin for another minute. 

Eventually, Fives pulled away and dragged a hand down his face. Rex linked their hands together and stood up. He tugged Fives along to the others. Rex sat down in the middle of Torrent so Fives could sit next to Echo. Fives dropped his head to his batchmate’s shoulder. Echo briefly pulled away from Kix to hold Fives against his side. Kix pulled Echo back towards him, who dragged Fives along with him. Then Kix slowly ran his fingers through the younger ARC’s hair. 

Rex looked to his right, seeing Jesse leaning his head back on a rock next to him, eyes closed. He heard Jesse shuffle a tiny bit closer. Rex smiled lightly when he felt Jesse curl around him. The Captain looked around and saw the other Alpha Companies in similar positions. Ghost was huddled up close. Cody had his eyes closed and leaned heavily on Helix. In the Wolfpack huddle, Blitz's head was laying in Ace’s lap, misty eyes giving off the impression he was close to crying. Wolffe had let Arks rest on his shoulder with one arm wrapped protectively around the medic. 

What surprised Rex the most was with Bly’s company. Bailey was curled into Impulse’s chest, his face hidden from view. Rex had only seen the hardheaded, fiery clone act that soft only a few times. 

Ponds’ company wasn’t surprising though. That particular company wasn’t exactly the most physically affectionate group ever. The only two clones touching were Ponds and his second youngest member. The unnamed brother was tucked under Ponds’ right arm, not super close.

Rex sighed heavily, letting his eyes close. He felt Fives nudge his pinky finger with his own. Rex carefully wrapped their two pinkies together and let his body relax. _We’ll be okay._

* * *

  
  


“I spy something…brown,” Zeke said in a bored tone, running his fingertip over the slick layer of the wall beside him.

“Zeke,” Comet snapped. “If you say one more word, I will murder you and let your body rot in these tunnels.”

Jake stared at Comet with wide eyes and shifted closer to Wooley for protection. “I’m just trying to distract all of you; we’ve been down here for hours. I mean, I’m surprised Tup hasn’t lost his shit yet-” The youngest teenager slammed his fist into Zeke’s armored chest, surprisingly knocking the wind out of him. Zeke groaned and coughed lightly, “F-For someone so small, gah, damn, you hit hard.”

Tup glared at him. “Say that I am small again and I’ll show you who’s small. Your head is going through that wall over there. Heh. And you are literally only like four inches taller than me bucko.”

“You’re still the _shortest,_ ” Zeke sang, ruffling Tup’s hair even though it was in a bun. Tup smacked his hands away, worrying about his bun. 

Comet had never wanted to hit one of his brother’s so hard. _No one touches Tup’s bun except for me, punk,_ he wanted to say out loud so badly. Tup groaned in response, ignoring his older brother’s teasing for the time being. 

Zeke laughed, shrugging, “Come on, Tup. I’m just trying to make light of the situation.”

Tup replied with the sassy answer, And I’m going to blame your ignorance on you being bipolar.”That shut Zeke up real quick, making the others chuckle.

A few minutes later, Zeke returned, making a terrible mistake by speaking again, “Well, this is fun.” He referenced their situation.

Comet growled, and abruptly stopped, “That’s it.” He lunged for Zeke, aiming to either slam him against the wall or to strangle him. Tup jumped out of the way, not wanting his boyfriend to accidentally hit him. Wooley grabbed Zeke around the middle while Tup carefully did the same with Comet. 

“Comet, Comet, calm down,” Tup whispered in his ear, holding tight. Comet tried to break free of his lover’s strong grip, to no avail. Soon, the two teenagers stopped trying to kill each other and went lax. 

Wooley dropped his head to Zeke’s shoulder. “You done now? I would rather not have you die because you killed each other.”

Zeke patted his shoulder half-heartedly, still giving Comet a smug look. “Sure.”

Comet and Zeke were let go. They silently started walking again for about ten minutes when Jake nudged Wooley’s arm. The medic looked down seeing Jake looking up at him with scared eyes. “Jake, what is it?”

“Dizzy. I also feel fuzzy,” 

Wooley could tell Jake didn’t want to use a lot of words. The others also heard and stopped their advancement further into the tunnels.

Wooley nodded and sat Jake down on the ground. “Do you feel like you’re going to have a seizure?” It didn’t make sense to Wooley if Jake were to have a seizure when there weren’t any triggers down in the dark.

“Don’t know.” Jake was freaking out because he had never had a seizure in front of the other teenagers, he had only had seizures when he was with Bly and the others.

“Jake, it might be the concussion. There are no flashing lights down here, right?” Wooley's tactic was to get Jake aware of the fact that it wasn’t his epilepsy and just his concussion. 

“Y-yeah,” Jake agreed, feeling so small and defenseless. 

“Okay, that means that it’s not your epilepsy and just because you hit your head hard,” Wooley explained gently. Jake nodded and let Wooley hug him gently. He relished in the comfort he was receiving from his brother and went boneless in his arms. 

Wooley pulled away after a minute and pulled Jake up with him. Jake curled closer to him, feeling a chill run down his spine. It was getting a small bit colder with every tunnel they entered and the deeper they went. Wooley’s warm hand pressed against his lower back, leading him into another tunnel. 

Zeke didn’t stop talking, being the smug bastard he was. While he loved his brothers to death, it was really fun to tease them, and acting like this predicament was so much fun. But then the tunnel started getting smaller. Zeke immediately noticed, like the walls were threatening to cave in around them and it was also getting darker and darker.

“Hey guys, maybe we should turn back,” Zeke did his absolute best to mask the trembling voice.

Comet detected it, smirk sliding onto his face. “Awwww, is the big baddie of the group scared of the dark? Ha!” Comet couldn't resist the urge to be a smug asshole.

Everyone joined in on laughing, enjoying that Zeke finally had something to be afraid of on this journey of theirs.

“Fuck y’all!” Zeke settled for, not able to think of a comeback.

As time went on, Zeke started to feel dizzier. Every step deeper, and a step closer to death in Zeke’s mind. The already long cavern was stretching, even more, making Zeke panic. His fingers jittered by his sides. He didn’t do good with small spaces as well. He couldn’t breathe; it was like all the oxygen had been sucked out of the air. 

“Guys, can we turn back?” Zeke was seriously surrendering his ‘badass card’. He was terrified at that point.

No one heard him.

“G-guys,” Zeke tried to breathe but he was met with nothing. His anxiety spiked as his eyes darted from left to right, the walls getting closer to him.

"Guys, I don't...I don't feel good. Too...too small."

Zeke collapsed onto the ground, cradling his head, hyperventilating. His hands shook violently where they were, hallucinations flashing before his eyes. The oldest teenager curled up tightly, mumbling nonsense under his breath, wanting his brothers to come back and save him from his own mind. The issue with his schizoaffectiveness was he hadn’t figured out what caused an episode for him. It typically happened when he was under a lot of stress that had been building up for a few days. But it didn’t have a direct pattern to follow, so he never knew the true causes of his episodes.

Further down the tunnel, Tup felt that something was wrong because Zeke had gone completely silent which was odd for the outlandish teenager. He turned around to look over his shoulder and found nothing—or as close to nothing as it was gonna get—but the other side of the tunnel and darkness. There is literally nothing there. Zeke was gone. _Please don’t do this to me. My anxiety can’t handle this,_ Tup begged internally.

“Comet!” Tup shouted to his boyfriend in alarm. “It’s Zeke!”

Comet rolled his eyes; normally he would be concerned in a totally normal situation but Zeke had ticked him off earlier. “Now what’s wrong?”

“Zeke’s gone,” Tup explained, playing with his fingers nervously. 

Comet started mumbling under his breath how much of a wimp his older brother was.

Jake’s eyes darted from their position to where they had just come from. “I dunno guys. What if something-” Jake's soft voice was interrupted by a loud sob coming from behind them, the sound echoing through the walls of the tunnel. Everyone mutely looked at each other and then started sprinting back.

They pounded down the tunnel, the sounds of their footsteps reverberating all around them When they reached Zeke, Wooley took the lead. He crouched in front of the 91st boy, keeping his hands in view.

“Zeke, shhhhh. It’s okay, nothing bad is going to happen to us,” Wooley said in a calm voice.

Zeke could hear Wooley but at the same time, the walls caving in on him were very distracting. He curled into a tighter ball. He jumped away when a hand touched his shoulder, scaring him. Zeke let out a scared whimper. 

Wooley didn’t try to reach for Zeke again, who had quite literally jumped back. Zeke’s shoulders hit the wall, and he tried to push farther into it but it hurt. Zeke whimpered and cried, feeling his schizophrenia take over his brain.

_The walls are going to crush you and your brothers. You’re going to die and you will be a disappointment to your older brothers because you couldn’t escape a simple cave._

Zeke bit his lip hard, wanting to stop freaking out but he couldn’t. He just couldn’t do it. He loved his younger brothers but only his older brothers could calm him down. 

“Zeke, you need to listen to me. You are okay. We aren’t in danger right now. Try to focus,” Wooley spoke softly.

Comet stood next to Tup, not knowing what to do. Even Wooley couldn't do anything and he’s the medic. _Windu, please just sense Zeke’s discomfort and do some Force...magic...things._ Comet knew how ridiculous it would sound out loud, but it didn’t hurt to try praying it. 

“We’re all okay, Zeke,” Jake reassured his older brother, stepping forward a small bit. 

Comet dropped down next to Wooley. “What can we do?”

Wooley shrugged, a little frustrated that he couldn’t help his brother. “Just try to get him aware of his surroundings.”

Wooley sat down fully and lightly gripped Zeke’s trembling hand. “Come on, Zeke. Look around, the walls aren’t moving, no one is hurt; everything is okay.”

Wooley must’ve gotten through to him because Zeke met eyes with him. His golden eyes were blown wide in fear, staring at Wooley, like he was begging him to make it stop.

“There you go, Zeke. Just breathe. You’re safe, and we won’t let anything happen to you,” Wooley cooed, knowing that Zeke needed someone to get him to see reality. 

Zeke continued to mumble things under his breath, and he broke his gaze with his younger brother. Wooley gently put two fingers under his chin and lifted Zeke’s head up. 

“I’m right here, Zeke. The walls aren’t getting smaller, it’s just your schizophrenia. I promise you’re okay Zeke,” Wooley made circles with his thumb on Zeke’s palm. 

Tup slowly dropped down next to Wooley on his free side. “Zeke if the walls were caving in, we would all be dead right?”

Zeke seemed to think for a minute before nodding slowly. Tup smiled gently. “Then the walls aren’t caving in, just like I said. Can you look around now and see for yourself?”

Zeke slowly looked at the tunnel, eyes focusing on the walls themselves, and the movements. He stopped crying and felt Wooley shift closer. He let the medic hold him close, stroking the length of his spine.

“You okay now?” His youngest brother asked him, cocking his head to the side. Zeke nodded to Tup’s question but didn’t tear his gaze from Wooley’s shoulder. 

The oldest boy pulled away and nodded to Wooley, insinuating that he was ready to move. Wooley helped him stand and slowly led Zeke back down the tunnel. Jake squeezed in and grabbed one of Zeke’s hands. Zeke hesitated before lacing their fingers together, appreciating the comfort. 

Comet and Tup walked behind them and Comet tugged Tup closer to his side. Tup grinned up at him, dropping his head to shoulder.

“How do you do that?” Comet suddenly asked.

Tup gave him a cute, confused look. “What do you mean?”

Comet chuckled, “You always seem to know what to say when someone is upset.”

Tup shrugged. “I guess if I can’t be happy I’ll help someone be happy or at least a little happier.”

Comet’s gaze became sad because of the beginning of Tup’s sentence. Tup winced himself. “Sorry, that sounded way better in my head.”

The teenagers came to the smallest part of the tunnel and Tup and Comet saw Zeke start to shake lightly again. Tup placed a gentle hand on Zeke’s shoulder blades, not planning to lift his hand until they came to an opening.

They all crouched down to slide under the smallest section and went single file for the rest of the way. Zeke stopped shaking finally and Tup took his hand off of his back. Tup’s head whipped around when Comet hissed. His boyfriend had momentarily stopped and gripped his right knee.

“Comet?” Tup softly prompted his boyfriend, still keeping an eye on the group so they wouldn’t get separated. 

“I’m fine,” Comet waved him off and started walking again. Tup stayed glued to his side, not trusting his boyfriend completely. 

Tup and Comet came to a stop once they caught back up with the others. They just crossed the threshold of a giant-ass cavern; it was basically formed in the shape of a giant cylinder with a very tall ravine inside it. The ravine was in the form of steep cliffs on either side of the teenagers. Some of the rocks on the walls above them were glowing almost, humming with life. The teenagers slowly turned their attention from the rocks and looked up, making various sounds of shock and awe at what they saw. From what they could make out through the barely lit darkness of the cavern, the actual ceiling hung above the top of the ravine. It amazed them but also instilled fear in them because of their fresh awareness of how deep they truly were from the surface. They just had no idea how exactly deep they were. But one small look to their right, and there it was, their answer as clear as day. Stray bits of light poured in through the darkness at the top of the cave, graceful and tranquil, revealing bioluminescent stalactites, oddly making the scenery look beautiful.

“Holy fucking shit, this is huge,” was all the Comet could say.

“And..cool?” Tup whispered hesitantly, unsure.

Jake pointed to the streams of light. “See that? There’s light pouring through. Could it be an entrance or something?”

Wooley nodded in agreement. “If we can see the light, then that means we are closer to the surface than we thought.”

“Right.” Jake turned his gaze from the light to the medic. “ Then that’s our only option to go. But even if we could climb to the top, we wouldn’t be able to get out without collapsing the place down on top of us.”

Tup observed the terrain they were facing. There were multiple large boulders scattered around next to the rocky walls. Tup walked off to the right side, leaving Comet alone in the back of the group, and kicked one of the rocks lightly with his foot. Comet watched him silently, the corner of his lip pulling up. Tup tilted his head far back. _Woah, that wall is tall,_ he thought. Tup squinted at the jagged rocks jutting from the intimidating wall. They poked out from it. The perfect stepping stones. Tup also noticed that the tall wall led up to what seemed to be a flat ledge. Well, it looked like they would have to do some rock climbing. 

Before he did anything, he activated his comm. “Rex?” He tried to reach his brother with no luck. “Still no luck. Anyone else wanna try?” Comet tried next but got no response.

“Damn it,” Tup sighed. 

He hesitantly started to climb up the steep wall, climbing from rock to rock a few paces, then he vaulted himself over to another usable one. Once he started to get a hang of it, he smiled to himself and barely looked over his shoulder. A couple of pebbles crumbled to the rocky floor below. A few of those fell onto Wooley’s and Jake’s shoulder plates with quiet ‘chunk’ sounds. They blinked, looking at one another before looking up, not knowing what was happening, and caught sight of Tup climbing the goddamn wall. 

“Uhhh, Tup?” Jake blinked.

“Come on! Follow me!” Tup yelled down and kept going. The others slowly followed soon after, not really liking the youngest teenager’s plan, but they knew it was their only option.

The climb was a bit strenuous, but they managed. Tup reached the small ledge first and heaved himself up onto it. He looked down and watched his brothers as they climbed up too. Comet was making small grunting sounds as he kind of struggled, but they were very soft sounds, nearly unnoticeable. Zeke reached the ledge second and pulled himself up. Next was Jake, then Wooley and last was Comet with a bit of effort and probably a pale face under that helmet. Tup turned around and stared up at yet _another_ kriffing cliff leading to a second ledge. Tup exhaled in relief, thinking they were done, and then turned around. 

“You gotta be kriffing me?” Tup gawked at the much shorter wall.

Comet leaned forward and rested his hands on his knees to relish in the temporary rest.

“Okay, that’s gonna be a problem,” Zeke commented. 

Comet peeked through one open eye and straightened up. “Bruh,” He mumbled breathily. The wall, such a tragedy for the young clones, had no rocks on its surface at all. The rock was completely smooth, like a baby's skin. 

“Are you kriffing kidding me? How are we supposed to kriffing get up there?!” Zeke yelled, stomping his foot. He walked away, crossing his arms behind his neck to breathe better. 

Wooley shook his head and approached him. “Calm down, Zeke. We’ll figure out a way.”

Tup ignored them, studying the wall. He’s become quite observant lately in the last year or so, so he used that developed skill set to his advantage. Comet slightly limped up to stand beside him, crossing his arms over his chest.

“What do you think we can do?” He asked Tup.

Tup hummed, then glanced at him, “We could just have a boost system of some sort. See, the wall is too smooth. A few rocks here and there near the top, but not enough near the bottom. I think that if we have one person stay down here and boost one person up, then we can keep doing that until everyone is up. Then the last person will get lifted up afterward.”

Comet’s eyes widened. “Huh, that can work.”

“Good.” Tup turned to look at him briefly before turning to the others. “Alright guys, here’s the plan; we’ll need someone to get boosted up to that ledge. The booster will get everyone else up and then they’ll get pulled up last. Sounds good?”

Everyone nodded. 

_“Yeah~_ That sounds wonderful.” Zeke rolled his neck a couple of times, pumping himself up. “Question though, who will go first?” Everyone went silent.

Tup stared at them. _Unbelievable,_ he thought in exasperation. “Alright, alright. I volunteer to go up first. Lazy asses.”

Comet smirked to himself, which soon disappeared from his face, eyebrows twitching when his knee flared up in pain. 

“We need a lifter. Y’all can figure that out yourselves,” Tup mumbled, swaying his hips gently as he walked over to the wall.

Before anyone can even be a self-volunteer, Zeke took it upon himself to pat Comet on the shoulder. “You’re up buddy.” He immediately volunteered Comet as the lifter because he was most likely the strongest out of all of them, with Zeke trailing in second, _of course._

Comet looked sheepish. “I can’t. I think I dislocated my knee; it won’t be able to handle the pressure of lifting all of you.” Wooley gave him a scolding glare. “Now you tell me? Really?”

Comet ducked his gaze. “Would a ‘sorry’ suffice?” 

Wooley smacked him upside the head. “No, you _di’kut._ You’re supposed to tell me when it happens; not when we are scaling goddamn rocks.”

Zeke stepped forward, smiling, and stood next to Tup. “Up you go, Tup’ika.” Zeke linked his hands together and squatted down. Tup blinked down at Zeke and then looked at Comet, wondering why they switched. But there was no time for worrying. They gotta get out of here. And Comet would just dismiss his concerns anyway. So, Tup refocused and carefully stepped onto his brother’s joined hands, feeling Zeke dip down a little more, then push him up. 

Tup braced his arms on either side of him once he was able to reach the top. He shifted his body so he could sit on the edge of the rock. When Tup looked down he saw Comet had taken a step forward, both he and Zeke prepared to catch him if he slipped. Tup stood up, then thought for a second before sitting back down but on his knees. 

Zeke grinned at Tup before turning to the next teenager. “Alright Jakey, your turn.” The blue-eyed teen gave his brother a distasteful glare at the nickname but stepped up to the plate. Tup reached a hand down, connecting his and Jake’s hands, gripping his wrists. He helped Jake get up once Zeke gave him a helpful boost.

Wooley went next, then it was Comet’s turn. Comet grimaced at the pressure that was being put on his supporting leg. 

Zeke snorted lightly, “You okay there?”

“Just shut up and get me up there.”

Zeke tried to be as gentle as possible when lifting Comet up. Tup grabbed his boyfriend and heaved him up. Comet groaned at the pain in his knee and nuzzled closer to Tup. Tup shushed him lightly and pressed his lips to Comet’s head. “Shhhhh, shhhh. It’s okay, I’ve got you.”

While Tup was busy with Comet, Jake and Wooley lifted Zeke up. Comet calmed down enough to pull away from his boyfriend. They all stood up and were met with the same obstacle. Another kriffing wall. Same height as the second one.

“Damn it,” Zeke sighed, pushing down his bubbling anger that was about to spew.

After they were all up again, there was a cobblestone-textured walkway that seemed pretty thick in-depth just ahead with no supporting walls on either side. That was a total deathtrap accident just waiting to happen, but on the other side of it was more flat ground. The group slowly crossed the walkway, eyes focused straight ahead. They all almost reached the other side of the walkway, but Jake accidentally walked on an unstable part and yelled when the walkway gave way under him...

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy cliffhanger!
> 
> Soooo, this was only supposed to be two parts, and I was going to post this part next week. It turned out to be really long, so my editor and I decided to split it into three parts. Anyway, this was really fun to write and I hope you guys enjoyed it!💙
> 
> If you want more information about Zeke's specific schizophrenia disorder, check out WebMD for more information. I swear I did not make it up.
> 
> Beta Reader/Editor-AngelWars (Ao3). She is a fucking saint, the whole "parkour"/climbing scene was a fucking mess but she managed to fix it so you guys could understand it 😂. It took about three hours to fix but we did it!
> 
> What do you think? Request?


	40. Chapter 40-Landslide (Pt. 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While the Alpha Companies are panicking and losing hope in finding their brothers, trouble arises in caves. Rocks collapse, hidden injuries are revealed, and the boys are getting tired of each other and their situation. They hope their big brothers will find them in time.

Jake almost plummeted forty feet into a dark chasm had it not been for the two pairs of hands grabbing him. 

“Shit!” Jake cursed, surprising everyone.

Comet and Zeke had instinctively grabbed Jake but Comet almost fell with him. “Fuck!” Comet also cursed at the pain in his knee. Tup grabbed Comet by the torso while Wooley did the same with Zeke. 

“Pull him up already!” Wooley shouted after thirty seconds of Jake just hanging there. Zeke and Comet shuffled back. Wooley quickly tugged Jake away from the edge and onto the more stable part as it broke off a little more. 

Jake was shaking violently in Wooley’s arms, crying silently. Wooley hugged Jake close, “I’ve got you, I’ve got you.”

Zeke hugged Jake from behind., “You’re okay. Shhhhhh, sh, sh. Come on, come on. Let’s get off this damn deathtrap and then we’ll sit for a second.” Zeke led Jake off the walkway, covering his eyes until they reached the flat ledge.

Tup let Comet lean against him as they followed silently. Soon after, the group members found themselves spread out across the wide ledge, facing the walkway they just left behind. Tup leaned tiredly against a wall, chest heaving at the effort he just exerted. He rubbed his thumb over Comet’s shoulder. “Today is not our day, isn’t it?” 

Comet shook his head.

Jake was still crying even after two minutes. It wasn’t just because of him almost falling, it was the whole fucking day setting him off. He just wanted to be back with his Alpha Company and leave this godforsaken planet. 

“Jake, I know you’re stressed right now and probably a little overstimulated, but we have to keep moving buddy.” Wooley hated the way Jake whimpered when he finished his sentence. Jake shakily stood up, still buried in the medic’s chest. 

To the right of them was a narrow path against a wall. The wall was on the right. The left side was completely left open, making slip-up mistakes and fatal falls to the dark chasms below possible. But it was the only way forward. On the other side of the path was another flat ledge with a giant hole in the wall. It could be a tunnel out of this cavernous hellhole. Wooley protectively held Jake, bent on holding him the whole way over to the start of the narrow path, feeling his heart slowly getting crushed at the sound of Jake’s soft cries when seeing what they were coming up to, knowing soon that Wooley would have to leave him for a few seconds. 

Wooley tried to stay close to him as long as possible, volunteering to wait for Zeke to go first, then Tup next so they could go third. Comet, for some reason, said he’d go last. Jake glanced over his shoulder at the Wolfpack member, worried about him. The sound of crumbling rocks and a sharp curse brought his attention back to Zeke. Zeke had pressed his back flat against the wall, panting hard, trembling like a leaf.

“Whoo. Whoo. Okay. Okay, okay, okay. I can do this. Kriffing hells,” Zeke mumbled at a sporadic speed.

“You got this Zeke. Keep going,” Tup encouraged him, looking beyond Zeke’s shoulder. 

Zeke nodded slowly and started to shuffle to his right. While Wooley stuck close to Jake as they waited for Zeke to move and for Tup to follow him, Jake rehid his face in his chest. 

“Jake, I have to let you go for a bit or we’ll both fall, okay?” Wooley explained when it was their turn to shuffle across the narrow path.

Jake nodded and reluctantly and broke away from Wooley. Jake went first, then Wooley. Everything was going. It was all good. Up ahead Zeke tried his hardest to not look down, looking down meant getting dizzy from the height. But the darkness swirling down below seemed to only get louder somehow, whispering terrible things to him. His eyes flicked down and he stopped briefly. Tup nearly bumped into him.

“Jesus. Zeke? What’s goin’ on?” Tup asked.

Zeke stared at the darkness. It was whispering. Whispering. Whispering, whispering.

“Zeke? You good?” Tup asked a second time, reaching over to tap Zeke’s shoulder. Zeke suddenly tipped forward though. Tup yelped in alarm and frantically slammed his hand into Zeke’s chest plate, pinning him against the wall. “Holy shit. Zeke!” Tup cursed.

Zeke snapped out of it and blinked, looking at Tup. “Shit. Sorry, sorry. I just...heard something.”

Tup offered a smile. “It’s okay. Don’t look down, okay?” Zeke nodded. Tup looked over his shoulder and yelled, “Guys, don’t look down okay!”

There were various grunts of confirmation from the others. The group slowly trudged along, realizing that the other ledge seemed much closer than it really was. Comet cursed poisonously because of that realization. His knee was starting to hurt him even more. He had to stop and breathe deeply, wanting to scream at that point; he wasn’t sure what he wanted to yell at but he just wanted to scream.

Tup was in the front so he couldn’t exactly fully turn around to ask what was wrong. Besides, both Wooley and Jake were between him and Tup. Wooley turned back though and saw the amount of pain the Wolfpack teenager was in. “How bad is it, Com’?”

“Bad,” Comet shakily said.

Wooley debated for a couple of seconds, trying to move this along. “Zeke, we gotta get to the other side soon. Comet’s hurt.”

Comet shivered, feeling ashamed, knowing Wooley couldn’t look at his knee at that moment. “You know what, nevermind. It’s not as bad as I thought.”

Wooley glared at him over his shoulder but continued to move. Tup heard the conversation and also shot Comet a few concerned glances the best he could. Finally, after nearly 5 minutes, the group reached the ledge where they took a minute to catch their breath and stop the adrenaline from overriding their bodies.

Tup stepped up to Comet’s side, having recovered much quicker than he did. “You need to get your knee checked out,” Tup ordered, his voice making no room for argument. But it was not a good idea because Comet was partially raised by some of the most stubborn clones out there.

“No, Tup.” Comet started to test his knee, putting more and more pressure on it. Wooley, Jake, and Zeke watched from afar, just waiting for something to happen.

Comet’s pride was the biggest problem at the moment. He was in a lot of pain but he didn’t want to admit it to his brothers.

_ Come on, Comet. Just breathe. Just breathe like Arks always tells me. _

Comet took a hesitant step forward but his knee buckled at the last second. Tup jolted forward, keeping Comet up straight. Comet pushed him away lightly, not enough force to accidentally knock him onto the ground, but enough to get him to back off. “I’m fine, I don’t need help.”

Tup sighed, a little frustrated with his boyfriend, “Babe-”

“Tup! I said I am fine! Stop pushing it, and just...give me a second!” Comet snapped before Tup got the chance to speak. Tup took an aborted step back away from his boyfriend, his sad puppy eyes making a reappearance on accident.

“Comet, don’t let your pride get in the way. It could be your downfall.” Wooley commented, not liking that his brother was being mean to Tup.

“Literally,” Zeke added, getting a snort from Jake.

Comet ignored them, replaying Arks’...instructions in his head. Arks always told him that he had to stay calm and breathe deeply if he was ever badly injured. 

Tup backed away, even more, when Comet stood up straight, crossing his arms in front of his chest. 

Comet straightened up and tried to walk forward but his knee buckled for the last time because it was fucking done. The second youngest teenager let out a yelp of pain, making the others cringe. They were just realizing how much pain Comet was truly in. Tup lunged forward again, catching Comet in an embrace. Comet let out a string of broken whimpers as Tup slowly sank to the ground with him.

Tup spoke in a hushed tone to him, telling him, “I’ve got you” and “Just relax”. Wooley swiftly went over, crouching in front of Comet. Comet’s hand had a vice grip on his knee, pain level through the roof. 

Wooley, as gently as possible, started pulling Comet’s knee straight out but stopped when Comet let out a gaspy whimper. Wooley automatically stopped his movements. “Shhh, shhh, I know it hurts, I know. I’m trying to be gentle Comet but I have to get it straight to look at it.”

Comet looked at him with tears in his eyes, leaning his head on Tup’s shoulder. Wooley watched as Comet twisted in pain when he moved his knee even more. Wooley finally got Comet’s knee straight and started to lightly press on different parts of Comet’s knee. He pressed his thumb on the side of Comet’s knee and the teenager flinched away. 

“There?”

“Y-yeah.”

Wooley worked Comet’s knee around. “Did you happen to lock it out when you fell from the landslide?

Comet nodded. “A rock also fell on it.”

Wooley muttered something under his breath that was similar to ‘kriffing younger brothers not saying anything’. Wooley started to mess with the actual joint of Comet's knee and pursed his lips.  _ Dislocated _ . Wooley moved to the back of Comet’s knee, feeling for the different major tendons and ligaments. He found something odd about the major ligament though.

“Comet, I’m about to test your ACL, this shouldn’t hurt unless your ACL is torn. I’m really sorry that I have to do this but I can’t tell if it’s torn or not.”

Wooley gripped Comet’s lower thigh and the top of Comet’s tibia, and he pushed down on Comet’s femur while lifting his lower leg, making a jerking motion with his leg, then switching the pressure to the lower leg. 

Comet nearly screamed in pain, muffling it into Tup’s shoulder. Wooley winced and took his hands off of Comet’s knee, finally finished. Comet let his tears of pain leak from his eyes.

“Shhhh. Baby, shhhhh,” Tup crooned, rocking back and forth. Comet could barely hold onto his boyfriend; he was shaking so bad.

Wooley stroked Comet’s back. “I know, Comet. I’m sorry I had to do that.”

Jake took a small step forward. “What’s wrong with Comet’s knee?”

Wooley sighed, “The joint is minorly dislocated with a torn MCL. But what’s worrying me is his ACL. It doesn’t look good.”

Tup stroked the nape of Comet’s neck. “What happens if it’s bad?” Wooley didn’t look at Tup or Comet.

“What is it?” Tup pressed the matter.

“If it’s completely torn, and we have to do this all over again,” Wooley pointed to the obstacle course they just finished, “Comet may never recover completely.”

Comet nuzzled close to Tup, fear gripping his heart. If he had a bad knee for the rest of his life it would raise suspicion amongst the Admirals. And Comet didn’t want to be decommissioned for a fucking ACL tear.

“But, I’m not saying that’s the case. It will be painful as hell, but he could possibly walk on it for a little while longer. It might just be a partial tear.”

“Baby, what do you want to do?” Tup asked, kissing Comet’s head.

“J-just keep moving,” Comet muttered, wiping his tears away. Tup helped him stand up. Then Tup moved to stand on Comet’s right side so he could help brace his body. Wooley hovered behind the two, letting Zeke and Jake take the lead.

They traveled cautiously, not wanting to test the lengths Comet’s knee could go. The tunnel was getting colder and colder. The teenagers shivered, trying to press close to one other. They stopped when they heard a sudden rumbling sound. The sound sounded strangely like rocks falling. The floor vibrated underneath their feet.

“Did...did the tunnel just collapse?” Jake quietly asked, pressing closer to Zeke because of the slight darkness.

“Yep. We have no way out now,” Tup huffed, keeping his grip on Comet.

“We should just keep moving,” Comet said, almost stumbling over his words because of the burning, bone-aching pain riddling his tired body right now.

The group continued their trek down the tunnel, not seeing an end in sight. The ceiling above them seemed to be composed of metamorphic rocks from perhaps thousands of years ago, but it might be possible to get through it with the right equipment…equipment that the five teenagers didn’t have on them at that moment. Soon, the teenagers were all tired and stumbling over their own feet. Barely able to keep their eyes open long enough to not almost trip over a loose rock on the ground.

“M-maybe we should sit down for the night,” Zeke suggested, teeth chattering lightly. All the teenagers simultaneously dropped to the floor, huffing, not giving another thought about it, resting their backs against the walls. 

_ “Soooo,” _ Comet started after a minute of silence, scooting close to his boyfriend for warmth, “Wanna make small talk?”

Tup shrugged next to him. “Why not? We got nothing else better to do.”

Jake dropped his head on his knees, folding his arms. “Is anyone dating anyone? I know Comet and Tup are dating….psh,  _ obviously, _ but are you two dating anyone?” Jake gestured to Wooley and Zeke.

Wooley shook his head. “Nope. There’s no one in the picture for me to date, so until that happens, no one.”

Comet leaned his head back on the wall. “If you were to date someone, would it be a guy or girl?” Comet asked, because yes, typically their brothers were gay. Just a result of always being around other men and never women, except for the Jedi, Kaminoans, and rarely their trainers, it made them more attracted to their own gender. While most of them ended up gay, a good amount of clones were bi or even straight. Comet wasn’t sure if Wooley was gay, bi, or straight.

“It would be a guy. Maybe a girl, but I don’t really know.” Wooley shrugged.

“What about you, Zeke? Are  _ you _ dating anyone?” Tup asked, turning his attention to the oldest of the teenagers.

Zeke grinned. “Nope! Okay, my turn. Who is everyone’s best buddy? And you two can’t say each other!” Zeke pointed at Tup and Comet.

Jake had a cute, concentrated look on his face that made the others  _ ‘awww’  _ mentally. “Probably, Bailey.” The others nodded; Jake was really close to Bailey, but they didn’t exactly know why; it could’ve been anything.

Zeke couldn’t choose.  _ Ack, what do I do? Ugh, screw it.  _ “I would have to say ‘no-name,’ and since we don’t have rules that we can’t say more than one person...look, I couldn’t choose, so, as much as it pains me to say this….Comet too,” Zeke mumbled his brother’s name.

Comet looked at him in shock while the others chuckled. _ Oh, I was going to say Zeke anyway.  _ “Well, I would also have to say, Zeke.”

Comet looked to his boyfriend, waiting for him to answer. Tup looked to the ceiling in thought before answering with, “Either Jake or Wooley.”

Wooley smiled at him. “And I would have to say Tup.”

It was Comet’s turn to ask a question. He had to conceal his snickers, “Have you ever pranked somebody?”

Zeke shivered in fear. “Once. I pranked Choss and I paid heavily for it.  _ Never.. _ .again.” Choss was Zeke’s medic who was someone who was not easily impressed and he didn’t take too kindly to humor...especially pranks against him. Wooley's eyes widened. “What did you do?”

Zeke looked legitimately terrified. “We never speak of it.”

Jake looked at Zeke with a worried/concerned look and asked the next question, “Moving on….has anyone made out with someone?”

Everyone slowly turned to look at the two youngest teenagers. Tup blushed hard and hid his face in Comet’s neck. Comet cuddled him, making him blush even harder. 

“Okay, Jake, we all know you just asked the question to make me flustered.” Tup glared heatlessly at his brother. Jake chuckled, but then he downcasted his eyes.

“Has anyone done anything….more than making out?” Jake, the sweet innocent virgin, asked with a totally…pure intent.

Zeke nudged Jake teasingly. “What? Are you curious about it?”

Jake shook his head rapidly. “N-no! You said to make small talk s-so this is small talk.”

Tup shook his head also. “N-nope. Never.”

Comet shot a condescending look at Tup; according to  _ his  _ memory, they have been caught doing a  _ little _ more than making out….many times. “Babe, are you sure that’s your answer? Because a month and a half ago Wolffe, Fives, and Rex walked in right before I could get in your pants after  _ you  _ asked for it.”

Tup became flustered, shoving Comet away a little. “You are totally making it sound like more than it actually was, Comet, because I specifically remember that we were  _ close  _ to ‘more than making out’ that day!” 

Comet chuckled in amusement, “Fineee~ but you were totally begging for me to take off your pants. Just admit it.” Comet looked to the others and smirked. “Fact, we were close to ‘more than making out’ on  _ multiple  _ occasions because, well, how can we not, right babe? Tup makes things a bit more  _ interesting  _ every time _ , _ ” he whispered the last part. The others looked at Tup in shock, not expecting this totally different side of Tup before. They all knew the ‘easy to fluster,’ innocent Tup, not this totally cool, unashamed, and confident version of Tup who made out with his boyfriend in the barracks, out in the open. Who was he?

Jake’s raised his eyebrows. “Wow, I didn’t think Tup was the dirty one of the group.”

Tup whined, “Don’t say it like that-”

“Oh, we are definitely saying it like that,” Zeke interrupted. 

“Let’s move on!” Tup shouted, still blushing.

Wooley took mercy on his little brother and asked the next question, “Does anyone have a crush? I don’t.”

Jake shook his head a small bit. “No, and I don’t think I’ve ever had a crush.”

_ Fuck,  _ Zeke mentally said. He oddly didn’t answer. Correction; he didn’t say anything, at all which was suspicious of the talkative teenager.

Comet leaned forward, being careful of his knee. “Zeke?”

Zeke looked at Comet and just shook his head as his answer. Everyone said _ ‘Ooooooooo,’  _ their interests piqued. 

“He hesitated!” Tup pointed out, leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees. “Spill, Zek’ika.”

“Yeah, who’s the lucky girl?” Wooley assumed it was a girl because Zeke had never shown any interest in guys.

Zeke ducked his head away, being cutely shy. “It’s...it’s a boy first of all, actually.”

Tup could tell Zeke was nervous about telling them he’s gay. “Hey, that’s okay Zeke. Right?” Tup asked the others, giving them a pointed look to be polite just in case. The others simultaneously nodded with him.

Zeke jerkily nodded. “Yeah, it’s a boy I’m close with. But I’ll tell you that later.”

Tup looked so disappointed. “Awwww,  _ fine.  _ But I can’t promise to not play matchmaker once I know who it is. But I have to ask one question.”

Zeke sized him up for a minute before cocking his head to the side. “Shoot.”

“Is it someone way older than us or close to our age?” 

“Someone close to our age, but enough about my love life. I’ve got a fun question; who here has been fucked from either end?”

“Oh my-”

“I can’t believe you just-”

“TMI DUDE-”

“I’m going to pretend you didn’t just say that.”

Zeke raised his arms to the side. “What? The lovebirds over there must’ve done some type of action with Tup as a bottom. So, was Tup fucked in the ass or mouth; which one?” Tup opened and closed his mouth on a continuous loop, imitating a fish out of water. He couldn’t form any words even if he tried. 

“He’s speechless, this one’s speechless!” Wooley shouted, pointing to Tup.

_ But I...But..but.  _ Tup just stared wide-eyed at his brother before slowly speaking, “I….hate you right now.”

Wooley quickly shut everything down, “Okay that’s enough for tonight. We can take shifts. Comet you sleep first so you can rest your knee.”

Comet groaned but leaned comfortably against Tup’s side. Tup smiled down gently at him, pressing a kiss to his head. Comet didn’t fall asleep but he did close his eyes, staying against Tup’s side.

Jake curled in between Zeke and Wooley, resting his head on Wooley’s shoulder. Suddenly, Jake’s body language shifted from relaxed to tense. Wooley felt Jake tense under him and he turned his attention to his younger brother. “Jake, what’s wrong?”

“We have no way out. What if our oxygen runs out? What if they can’t find us because the tunnel is blocked? What if-” Jake’s breathing was becoming faster; panicking about hypothetical situations and outcomes flashing in front of his eyes. 

Wooley hugged him tighter. “Hey, hey calm down. Stop and think about our brothers. Do you honestly think Bly and the others will stop looking for us?”

Jake pitifully shook his head, sighing into the medic’s chest, “N-no.”

“Good. Because I know for one thing I will haunt the hell out of Cody if he lets us die.”

That got Jake to chuckle a small bit, imagining Wooley as a ghost. Jake remembered that he had a concussion and wasn’t allowed to sleep but he still stayed snuggled up into the medic’s side. Wooley let him, resting against the face of their rocky prison.

* * *

Tup gently stroked Comet’s soft hair, observing his boyfriend’s peaceful face. Tup shivered. The freezing temperature in the cave was killing him. If he looked closely he could see the blue tinge on his fingers. They had been sitting there for about three hours, and it was a very cold three hours.

Tup let his mind wander, and looking back on it, that wasn’t a good idea. He thought of Torrent and he knew how worried they were right now. Fives and Rex were probably freaking out. Tup closed his gold eyes and shakily sighed, mostly because of his anxiety taking over, but also because his chest was freezing.

A slightly cold hand touched his shoulder. Tup mutely opened his eyes, meeting eyes with his boyfriend who was now fully awake. 

“Breathe Tup’ika, it’s okay,” Comet’s voice was immediately soothing to the other teenager. Tup whined the smallest bit, folding over so he could lay his head on his boyfriend’s chest.

Comet sat up, wincing in pain, but finished the motion. He gently took Tup’s face in his hands, “Talk to me, baby.”

Tup started to cry silently, “I don’t want to die here.” His voice was so light that Comet almost didn’t hear it.

Comet made a sympathetic noise in the back of his throat. Comet slowly encircled his arms around his boyfriend, prepared to stop if Tup wanted him to. Tup leaned his head on Comet’s shoulder, just crying his heart out mutely. 

“You’re not going to die, Tup. I promise I won’t let you die.” Comet twirled the loose strands of Tup’s hair in between his fingers. Tup couldn’t stop crying though, still holding tightly onto him. 

Comet pulled Tup fully onto his lap and flinched when he accidentally placed Tup down on his bad knee and he quickly repositioned him. Tup hooked his legs around Comet’s waist, holding onto him tightly like he would disappear.

“What are you worried about?” Comet asked.

“T-that if I...die down here Fives and Rex will do something stupid. I don’t want them to die either.”

Comet smiled sadly at Tup’s ability to worry about others when he’s falling apart himself. “Ponds, Bly, Wolffe, and Cody wouldn’t let anything happen to them. And you’re not going to die.” 

Tup suddenly curled up closer, almost going boneless. Comet didn’t like how Tup put all his weight on him.

“Tup?”

Tup’s whole body vibrated with chills. “C-cold.” Tup eyes became heavy with exhaustion and they fluttered; fighting to stay open. Comet knew something was wrong. 

“Tup, you need to stay awake.”

Tup gave off a small noise of discontent and ignored his boyfriend. Comet shook him roughly. “Hey, stay with me. Stay awake.” Tup shivered violently, breath coming out in short, sharp gasps. He could feel Tup’s heartbeat pounding in irregular beats through his chest. 

Comet twisted his body to look at the sleeping medic of their group. Comet harshly kicked Wooley in the leg, jarring the trooper awake. “What Comet?”

Comet was already answering before Wooley finished his own sentence. “Something’s wrong with Tup.”

Wooley nodded and tried to move but he remembered Jake was laying on top of him. He looked down then realized that along with Tup, Jake had fallen asleep; with a major concussion. That's not good. Wooley shoved Zeke’s shoulder, making him almost topple over. Zeke tried to slap Wooley’s hand away, mumbling nonsense, but eventually pulled himself up.

Wooley practically dropped Jake in Zeke’s arms. “Try to wake him up.” Wooley went over to Comet, observing his little brother. _ Bluish skin, shivering,  _ Wooley noted, reaching for Tup’s wrist to feel his pulse. Wooley’s heart lurched when he felt the faint pulse line of his baby brother. 

“H-he has hypothermia,” Wooley said softly in disbelief.

Comet’s head snapped up. “What?! What do we do?”

Wooley’s hands started shaking. “I don’t know. Try to keep him warm but...this isn’t good Comet,” He warned his brother.

Comet glared at him. “Stop it. We are not letting him die.”

They stayed there for ten minutes trying to get Tup warm but nothing was working. And Jake wasn’t waking up. Zeke tried everything but he couldn’t get him to wake up. 

“This isn’t working, Comet,” Wooley repeated.

“What the hell are we supposed to do then?”

Wooley had tears in his golden orbs. “I don’t know  _ vod’ika _ .”

Comet cradled Tup's body to his chest, muttering under his breath. Wooley sat back on his heels, tears threatening to fall. As a last resort, he shakily activated his commlink and brought it up, pressing a few buttons.

Up on the surface, the 212th Commander sighed, hearing his commlink go off. Waxer was lying partially on his chest and shoulder, eyes slightly red.

“I have to get up,  _ vod’ika _ ,” Cody whispered gently in his ear. Waxer nodded numbly and moved off of Cody and into Boil’s arms. Cody reached over and grabbed his commlink from a rock he had placed it on, activating it.

“C-Cody?” a warbled teenager’s voice came through.

Back in the cave, Wooley’s commlink crackled and their older brother’s voice came through, “Wooley! Where the hell are you?!”

Wooley shook his head and started to let the tears fall. “I don’t know. I don’t...I don’t know, Cody.”

Cody’s heart shattered at the broken sound in Wooley’s voice. “Kid, what’s wrong? Talk to me here.” Cody glanced up and saw the rest of the Alpha Companies’ sitting up straight, staring at the commlink in his hand, all with hope shimmering in their eyes. 

Wooley looked around at the cave even though he knew all the elements of this fucked up situation. “Comet’s got a fucked up knee. Jake’s not waking up. And Tup is...I don't even know what. Cody, we need help. Please.” Wooley started crying harder towards the end as he begged his brother, shivering from the cold. He felt more desperate as the seconds passed, wanting out now.

Cody saw the relief in his brothers’ faces fall. Three out of five of the teenagers were critically hurt, and by the tone of Wooley’s voice, it wasn’t looking good. “Wooley, shhhhh, shhhhh. You have to calm down for me, okay kiddo?”

Impulse looked to the other clones in the battalions. All of them shared the exact grim expression on their faces, even when they couldn’t hear the conversation happening over the commlink. “Someone track the signal on Wooley’s comm. I don’t care who, but _karking_ _someone_!” Impulse yelled.

The other clones looked a little confused but did as they were told.

Helix leaned closer to Cody. “Wooley, what happened to Comet’s knee?” Helix started with Comet, based on the order of the list of the injuries Wooley briefly explained earlier. 

Wooley took a shaky breath and looked to Comet. “It’s definitely dislocated, but I can’t tell what else is wrong with it. There might be a torn ACL or MCL.”

Helix and Cody glanced at Arks, seeing the gears turn in his head. Helix moved on. “Tell me what's wrong with Jake.” 

“He has a bad concussion and he fell asleep. I don’t know for how long but now he’s not waking up,” Wooley told the older medic, praying that he would know what to do.

Helix didn’t like that explanation. “Have you tried  _ everything? _ ”

“Yes, Helix! What do I do?” Wooley was getting stressed, losing his calm that medics always retained under stress.

Helix made eye-contact with Concept but quickly tore it away, not wanting to see the pain in his brother’s eyes. “Tell me about Tup.”

Wooley put a shaky hand on Tup’s cheek, feeling the cold skin biting into his own. “He’s freezing, Helix.”

Helix frowned and actually held eye-contact with Kix who was leaning back against his husband’s chest. “Define freezing, kiddo. Freezing as in he’s just cold in temperature, or…”

Wooley paused and the older clones waited in agonizing silence. “I think he has hypothermia and freezing to death.”

Helix swore he heard Fives practically break Rex’s hand by squeezing so hard. “Wooley, you need to get him warm. Now.”

Wooley threw his arms out to the side in intense frustration even though his older brother couldn’t see him. “With what Helix?! He’s going to die and I can’t do anything about it!”

Cody took control again, being the nice one out of the pair, “Wooley you have to calm down. Try to get him warm, we’re trying to pinpoint your location as we speak.”

Zeke looked down as he felt someone shift in his arms. Jake had been the one who shifted and whimpered slightly. Zeke glanced to Wooley. “Jake’s awake.”

Wooley gently stroked Jake’s hair as the teenager whimpered and whined in pain. Jake gripped his temples with both hands.

“Jake, try to stay awake this time,” Wooley said quietly, but loud enough for his brothers to hear. Wooley turned sadly to Comet and Tup, seeing the older one hold Tup against him tightly.

Comet was trying in vain to get him warm. He pressed his head to Tup, becoming religious for the first time in his life. “I’m right here, Tup. You’ve got to wake up. Come on, baby. You can’t leave me like this.”  _ Please, don’t let him die. I’m begging anyone out there. _

Rex and the others were startled by a shout from one of his troopers. “Commander! We’ve locked onto their location.”

The Alpha Companies quickly stood up and started to follow the traced location. Cody said one last thing before he turned off his comm to give orders. “Wooley, sit tight with the others. We’ll be there soon.”

Wooley was so close to sobbing he couldn’t say anything. He placed a hand on Tup’s chest, desperate to feel his heartbeat. “Please be okay, please,” Wooley whispered.

He started feeling drowsy, the cold setting in more intensely. Comet looked about ready to fall asleep as well. Wooley pulled Comet close while also fumbling for Zeke’s hand. Zeke’s teeth chattered as he slowly moved closer to the trio with Jake. Comet moved Tup up further in his arms until they snuggled, so exhausted from everything and the pain in his knee. 

Wooley bumped Comet’s shoulder with his own to wake him up. Comet nodded in understanding and leaned his head on Wooley’s shoulder. Wooley turned to check on Jake and realized his eyes were closed again. “Jake, stay awake, buddy.”

Jake struggled badly for ten minutes before a loud banging sound jarred them all. All of them minus the youngest jumped, still freezing, but they really hoped it wasn’t the Separatists trying to kill them and it was just their brothers who had come to save them. They heard muffled shouting, but none of them could decipher it because they were all barely awake. Light suddenly blinded them but they didn’t move an inch. Shouting flooded their ears. They could only hear a few words.

“Get Tup out first! Then Jake-”

“I need an evac, now-” And other words blended together. Jake flinched when he felt arms wrap around his cold body, unable to determine who was now holding him. 

“Jake, stay awake. Keep your eyes open.” If Jake concentrated hard enough he could figure out it was Bly who was holding him, with Concept right beside him.

The others managed to get Zeke and Wooley out on their own, and then they finally reached Comet. 

“Comet, can you get up at all?” Kix asked with Arks crouched next to him. The teenager tried to shift his body but his knee couldn’t take any pressure.

“No.”

Kix quickly leaned closer to Arks, “One of us should go in and carry him out.” Arks automatically nodded, volunteering to go in. He stepped into the cave and dropped into a low crouch, not quite at eye level with the teenager. Comet didn’t hesitate to lean and rest his head on Arks’ chest. Arks gently and slowly slipped one of his arms around Comet’s back to support his weight and another under his legs. Comet bit his lip roughly. This burning sensation spread through his injured knee like a wildfire. Arks noticed Comet’s discomfort and shushed him lightly, and then he carefully stepped out of the entrance with Comet curled against his chest. The Wolfpack was waiting for them to come out, just wanting to see Comet before he got taken away for medical treatment.

Comet was placed on the ground, half-sitting amongst the other teenagers. Zeke was sitting up completely, head resting on his knees, his medic, Choss, spoke to him softly in his ear. Wooley was still crying but his tears slowly trailed down his cheeks now. Jake was shaking, from either fear, adrenaline, or the cold. Comet didn’t know. His blue eyes were tired but brighter than they were before, and he was leaning against Concept while he checked him over.

Tup was laying on the ground, different medics around him, taking his vitals and discussing what to do for the teenager. Tup’s lips were still blue. His body shook at a low intensity, curled up slightly.

Comet sighed, relaxed knowing that Tup was in better hands than him. Arks started messing with Comet’s knee, feeling all around the stiff joint. But his hands were oddly shaking. In the (close to) two years he had known Arks, his hands didn’t shake often. Comet’s own shaking hands slid down to Arks, taking them gently. Arks looked up, biting the inside of his lip. 

“I’m okay, Arks,” Comet whispered, not able to raise his voice any higher. Arks nodded and then turned his attention to Comet’s knee again. Comet jumped and whimpered when Arks accidentally pressed too hard on one of the injured ligaments. 

Someone’s body pressed against his back, thumb stroking his sternum. The person let out a string of coos and words of endearment. Comet sagged against his brother’s front, not knowing which clone in particular it was but he was going to accept their comfort. 

Arks shook his head lightly, cursing silently, rotating Comet’s leg slightly. Comet whimpered again, letting his head drop back against his brother’s shoulder. 

“How bad is it?” Wolffe’s voice came from behind him and Comet connected the dots that Wolffe was the one holding him up.

_ “Not the worst but still pretty bad. Torn ACL, MCL, and dislocated knee. He probably had some hyperextension too,” _ Arks quickly signed, not looking up from Comet’s knee. “ _ Comet, is this the same knee you dislocated before?” _

Comet barely saw the flash of hands but he nodded. “Yeah,” He confirmed

“Is there something we can brace his knee with until we get back on the ship?” Wolffe asked.

Arks sighed and shook his head,  _ “No, the only thing we can do is not jar his knee.” _

Wolffe sighed and glanced around at the other teenagers. The only one out of all of them that the medics seemed to be struggling with was Tup. The teenager still had this blue tinge to his skin and didn’t seem to be getting any warmer. The Commander saw Fives heavily lean on his boyfriend, hands tightly connected. 

Comet gazed tiredly at his boyfriend, not taking his eyes away from his body. Kix was completely silent and tense while he was working on Tup unless he was prompted otherwise. Helix must’ve deemed Wooley mostly okay to leave alone for a bit because Helix was also by the 501st medic’s side. 

Concept reluctantly left Jake’s side, muttering a few words to him. Jake whined for his brother and Concept dropped back down and held Jake’s hands. “I have to help Tup, kiddo. You’re going to be okay. I’ll be back soon, I promise.”

Jake looked into Concept’s eyes, seeing patience in them. Jake slid his hands off of Concept’s, curling into a ball again. Comet saw the interaction and beckoned Jake towards him. Jake scooted two feet to reach him. Comet pulled his brother into his arms, still leaning back on Wolffe’s chest. 

Wolffe uncharacteristically stroked Jake’s dark hair, making Jake lean into his hand. Wolffe continued to stroke his hair while he turned his attention to his other brothers. Ponds was sitting with Zeke, not talking, but holding his hand. Cody was in the middle of calming Wooley down, speaking in a mix of Mando’a and Basic. Bly was talking with the Generals and Commander Tano who had just arrived, seeing the relief in their eyes. Rex was still holding Fives, both of them letting the medic do their jobs, but everyone could see it was killing them to not help Tup.

Comet suddenly flinched when he felt the familiar poke of a hypo needle. He gave Arks a not-so-content look, knowing Arks did it when he was distracted on purpose.

Arks gave him a small smile, and rapidly signed, “ _ Would you have let me do it if you knew about it? _ ”

Jake smiled to the best of his ability, nuzzling closer to his younger brother. Comet sighed lightly, looking at Tup once again. The epileptic teen hugged Comet tighter and whispered, “He’ll be okay. They’ll do everything to make sure he’s okay.”

Comet smiled gratefully at Jake, rubbing his shoulder in thanks. “Thank you, Jake.”

Over near Tup, medics were rapidly talking in soft tones, trying to think of what to do. They were all surprisingly calm, considering that the 501st’s kid had  _ kriffing _ hypothermia. Kix checked Tup’s vitals one more time before he finally breathed easily for the first time in ten minutes. “His vitals are as stable as they are going to get. We need to get them all back to the ship and hopefully, the hypothermia will die down.”

The teenagers were transported onto the Resolute via LAAT flight. All of them were settled in the medbay. Until further notice, being closely watched by Coric and Kix. The Generals gave their orders quickly, knowing the teenagers were in critical condition and needed medical attention that they could only get on Coruscant. Once they arrived, the teenagers were rushed to the medbay with multiple medics around each of them. The clone medics were soon swarmed by Coruscanti doctors and were told to stand back so they could scan the individual clones to see what was wrong and who needed the most help. Zeke, Wooley, Tup, Jake, and Comet were placed under five white illuminated tables that were surrounded on all corners with tall white robotic claws, leaving wide gaps open on the sides of the tables so the doctors could work efficiently. 

As the young clones were placed onto the tables, the lining underneath said tables glowed, turning either a yellowish-green or a golden color. Immediately, eight lines of golden dust appeared, four on each side of the gaps, closing them in, surrounding the clones. 

Kix held in a growl, feeling protective of Tup. Helix tapped his shoulder and shook his head. Kix had never stepped foot into a Coruscanti medbay before, but Helix had. He was familiar with the outlandish technology that they used to help their patients. Clone medics were never given such things. That would be a perfect explanation for why they are unnerved by the tendrils floating on either side of the young ones. 

The Coruscanti doctors spoke amongst themselves in a whisper. The clone medics stood near the door, twitching anxiously, desperate to go over and help any way they could, but they weren’t allowed such a thing. They just needed to follow orders and stay out of the doctors’ way and let them do their job.

One of the Coruscanti doctors waved their hands above Zeke’s body and golden dust particles swirled, twisting and turning in place above him, swirling about him like snakes. Some kind of diagnostic appeared above him in the same golden dust, telling the doctor something in Aurebesh. Zeke stared up at them in awe, watching as they read the words rapidly appearing on the transparent screen. Beside him, the other doctors were doing the exact same thing with the other teenagers. 

“This one needs to be taken to the critical condition room,” Tup’s doctor said, looking at the nurse. “Couple of hours at least for its hypothermia.”

“What about this one?” The nurse pointed to Zeke. 

“Frisk?” The head doctor prompted Zeke’s doctor to speak.

“It’s fine. It may just need to rest in another room for now. It’s not in a critical condition. What about those three over there?” Frisk asked, looking at the two nurses next to Wooley and Jake.

“Neither of them need to be placed in critical condition.”

“Good. The last one, however, needs minor surgery for the ACL and MCL repair. Move the three troopers to where they need to go now,” The head doctor ordered, waving his hand dismissively. Zeke, Jake, Wooley’s and Tup’s tables deactivated on command. The glowing circles they were lying on floated off the main tables and toward the double doors. 

The head doctor turned to the clone medics and said, “Whichever trooper is your charge, you will follow.”

The medics nodded stiffly. Each medic left the room except for Arks, who had to stay with Comet for the time being. He may receive orders later.

Comet clenched his eyes shut, the burning feeling in his knee never leaving. He overheard a few bits and pieces of conversations between the doctors and nurses. He yelped when his body was transferred to a different table, his knee getting jostled in the process.

Arks took a small step forward when the teenager cried out but stopped himself. He wasn’t going to get kicked out and forced to leave Comet alone for not obeying orders. Comet shuffled away from the pair of hands on his knee. The person's hand caused him more pain. Based on the structure of the hands he guessed it was a female nurse, but he honestly wanted to call her a bitch and to get away from him. That would just get him in trouble though.

The teenager had heard how his doctor had called them ‘it’, not ‘he,’ causing him to distrust the people in this room.

“Nurse what is the problem?” Frisk asked slightly impatiently.

“It won’t settle down. It keeps shifting to avoid me touching its knee,” The nurse explained like it was Comet’s fault she was hurting him.

Frisk observed the uncomfortable teen and then looked to the medic who was staring into his eyes, almost challenging him. “Let its medic calm it down.”

Arks immediately made his way over to his teenager’s side. He quickly flashed his hands at Comet, “ _ You have to stop moving around, kid. They’ll hurt you more.” _

Comet practically whined, “Arks-”

Arks shook his head, making Comet quiet down.  _ “They’ll put you to sleep soon. Then you won't feel any pain for a while.” _

Comet glanced at the nurses and doctors around him before switching to sign language,  _ “What if they put me to sleep to kill me? The doctor doesn’t like clones and it’s obvious.” _

Arks sighed, feeling sympathetic for his and his brothers’ charge.  _ “I won’t let them do anything to you that isn’t for the purpose of repairing your knee.” _

Comet stared into Arks’ eyes, trying to look for any signs of an unspoken lie but he couldn’t find anything. He shakily signed to his brother, “ _ I’m scared.” _

Arks wanted to wrap Comet up into a hug and hide him away from the doctors that were scaring him but he couldn’t. Arks looked up and saw one of the nicer nurses with a hypo in hand, most likely filled with a strong downer or anesthesia to put Comet to sleep. The nurse tilted his head the smallest bit to Comet’s body. Arks gently took the teenager’s chin and tilted it towards him, keeping Comet's troubled golden eyes on him.

Comet looked confused at first then he realized that the only reason Arks would hold his head in place was for the purpose of him not seeing something. He heard footsteps approach from behind and then he felt a prick in his neck for the second time that day. Comet flinched and Arks shushed him quietly, hand stroking his hair. At least the male nurse was much more gentle than the female nurses. 

Comet’s eyes felt heavy as the drug entered his bloodstream. He put all his head weight on Arks’ hand, not able to hold it up anymore. If he heard any of the words that came out of the doctor’s mouth, he didn’t acknowledge it. He couldn’t focus on anything. The room blurred and eventually, his eyes fluttered closed on their own accord.

The last thing he heard was Arks’ oh-so quiet whisper.

_ “K’oyacyi.” _

* * *

Kix, along with one doctor and two nurses, walked into what seemed to be a healing chamber where patients were put to sleep inside of cylindrical bacta tanks for extensive exposure to bacta, a purified fluid that could accelerate healing and treat exterior wounds; bruises, burns, cuts, and such. 

Kix stared up at the tanks. They had tanks like these back on the Star Destroyers. Each medbay had one. But only one. Besides, Kix had never seen a tank as extensive as these before. 

What Kix's limited medic knowledge taught him was that the bacta fluid was generally warm inside the tanks, with the ability to heal Tup's case of hypothermia, and the tank could easily heal Tup on the outside as well.

“Attach IVs to the clone and assist him with taking off his armor,” The doctor, a woman this time, ordered the nurses, walking over to the computer system to turn on the fifth tank. Blue lights on the bottom illuminated it. 

Kix stood beside the female doctor and waited for further instructions, watching as the nurses asked Tup to get off the platform and remove his armor. Tup shivered as he did, snapping the brackets and clips up. Then, with the help of the nurses, he took his armor off, leaving on his blacks. It made him feel colder though. Afterward, the nurses had Tup lay back down on the platform again and wait. 

One of the nurses walked away and returned with an IV and put it off to the side. Tup stared at the needle nervously. Eyes bulging slightly. The brunette woman pulled up Tup's sleeve and reached over for the IV on the nearby table. Tup felt a slight prick and he flinched, whimpering for a second. 

Kix twitched again.  _ It’ll be alright Tup, _ he thought. 

In front of Tup, the machine started to hum gently. Then this gushing sound came from it. Loud and disruptive. The tank was filling up. Tup started to cry softly and turned his head left to right deliriously as he searched for Kix or just a familiar face. But all he saw were the two nurses surrounding him.

“K-Kix? Kix?” Tup called for him softly, groping at the air.

Kix, without even thinking, dashed over to the younger clone and stood at his bedside so then he could at least see him. The nurses moved out of Kix’s way to stand on the other side of the floating platform. “I am here Tup’ika. You’re going to be fine.”

“I'm cold," Tup sniffled. 

“You’ll be warm soon. Right, ma’am?” Kix looked up at the second nurse. A kind-looking young woman with a soft, round face.

“Yes,” She responded, smiling from Kix to Tup. “The water will make you feel warmer. And your medic will remain with you while you are inside.”

“Inside?” Tup blinked in confusion, tilting his head up far back enough to see the half-filled tank. He subconsciously reached for Kix’s wrist and looked up into Kix’s eyes. “You’ll be here?”

“The whole time. I won’t leave unless I have to, but I’ll be right here okay kiddo?” Kix reassured him. His gentle smile was always the right kind of medicine.

Tup smiled contemptuously and relaxed back onto the floating circle again. 

“The tank is ready for him. Initiate inserting the general anesthesia," The doctor ordered calmly, looking up at the two nurses and Kix.

The first nurse pressed a button on the side of a black machine. It pushed out the clear liquid through the tube and up toward Tup’s wrist. The youngest of the teenagers watched it enter his body and then within twenty seconds he started to feel lightheaded. The image of Kix blurred slightly. Blacks dots spotted Tup's vision in the corners of his eyes. Finally, his face relaxed, eyes fluttering closed. 

By the time the nurses and the floating circle carrying Tup reached the top of the small staircase the bacta tank was completely filled to the brim. The door swung open on command by the doctor on the floor below who was messing with the controls. 

The nurses did two things. First, the first nurse sat Tup on the circle. Next, she took out a cold black disk from her pocket and placed it on his back. The teenager shivered in his sleep when feeling the cool metal. The disk clicked, making metallic whirring sounds before three small black tentacles stuck out on the sides. While the first nurse checked on the device to make sure it was completely activated, the second nurse carefully inserted a tube down Tup’s windpipe to help him breathe and to protect his lungs from the fluid inside the tank. Tup didn’t feel a single thing; being under anesthesia. The end of the tube that stuck out of his mouth was then connected to a mask, which the second nurse put over his nose and mouth and strapped it to the back of his head. She went out of her way to make sure that Tup’s long hair was pulled out from under the strap. 

With the disk successfully activated and the mask secured, the nurses eased Tup off the circle and made sure he was sitting on the edge of the opening before they let him sink into the bacta. 

Kix walked up to stand in front of the bacta tank. He watched as Tup slowly sank into the watery bacta fluid, long hair floating lifelessly in front of his face as he tilted forward. The black tentacles on Tup’s back twitched at the familiar feeling of fluid around them and they suddenly turned organic, sliding out, thrusting forward to bend and stick to the glass behind Tup. Tup’s unconscious body moved backward with the motion, suspended in the fluid. 

Kix hummed thoughtfully, staring at his charge. 

"He'll be in there for the next couple of hours, trooper." The doctor told Kix, setting up a timer on the system for two hours to activate automatic drainage. 

Kix nodded. "Okay. Thank you, all of you," He thanked the doctor and the nurses. 

"Of course," The kind nurse responded, smiling. The doctor and the other nurse also nod at Kix. "You'll stay here and watch his vitals. We'll return after two hours."

"Okay." Kix gave a small salute to the three ladies before they left the room. The door closes behind them with a quiet woosh. 

Kix crossed over to the panel behind him and leaned against it, crossing his arms over his chest. He stared at Tup's peaceful face for a few seconds before closing his eyes too.  _ Might as well rest my eyes for a bit too.  _

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really hope you guys liked this chapter! I wish everyone a happy holiday or if your holiday you celebrate is over, I hope you enjoyed it! And a happy new year!
> 
> I'm curious, let me know what your favorite part of the chapter was. We have one more part for this section of the story and the next one is mostly fluff, with some angst. Get ready for that one!
> 
> What did you think? Requests?
> 
> Beta reader/Editor- AngelWars (Ao3)-
> 
> Angel- "Hey everyone! Angel here! Soooo, the year is almost over, huh? Hallelujah!! I hated this year so much for many reasons, and I've wanted this year to end so quickly, but that doesn't mean all bad things happened this year. This year I got to become the editor of this amazing story, and become a friend of Nicole's! I got to write and make so many cool OC troopers for Nicole and this story. It was all just so much fun!! I can't wait for next year to be the same. 
> 
> This chapter especially was a lot of fun because of all the rock structures I had to think of. But the best part is writing about the different personalities of the teenagers, in my opinion, which is so cool to write! Nicole can second that! I am also thankful for having gotten to get to know Nichole better and share our love for the clones and great story writing. I am also thankful for all of you! Thank you so much for reading! 
> 
> I wish everyone a Merry Christmas, a happy holiday, and a new year! ❤️️"


	41. Chapter 41-Landslide (Pt. 3)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The teenagers are now safely in their brothers' arms. Well, most of them are.

In the other room, the other three teenagers, Jake, Wooley, and Zeke, were just starting to wake up. Jake blinked his eyes open, groaning at the pain in his head. The 327th trooper blinked at the bright lights; he subconsciously hoped the lights wouldn’t trigger a seizure.

Jake looked around the room. In his tangled mind, he didn’t really take in the sight of Wooley and Zeke or the other medics next to their respective kids. His mind was too confused to process their presence. So, Jake scrambled to sit up, not knowing where he was. The unawareness of his whereabouts was freaking him out. He just wanted his brothers.

“Jake, hey, hey. You’re okay, take it easy. We’re all here kiddo.” The voice of his medic snapped Jake out of his stupor. Jake turned quickly to where Concept’s voice came from. The kind medic was seated to the left side of his bed and he was leaning forward, hand outstretched.

Jake breathed deeply in relief before throwing his upper body into Concept’s arms. Concept easily hugged Jake, burying his nose in Jake’s hair. He was so  _ karking _ happy Jake and the others were okay...well, mostly okay. 

The other medics chuckled softly before turning their attention to their own teenagers. Helix was gently threading Wooley’s hair with his fingers, waiting for him to fully wake up. Even Choss, Zeke’s very stern and blunt medic, was stroking the length of Zeke’s collarbone.

Wooley became coherent first. The younger medic looked up at Helix and smiled appreciatively, leaning into Helix’s warm hand. Helix smiled down at him. 

“What have we told you about going near cliffs?” Helix teased, making the other medics laugh. Ghost had never let Wooley forget the first time he fell off the edge of a cliff with—who at the time was a new member of the Wolfpack—Comet. Boil and Crys made it their mission to tease and  _ remind  _ Wooley to stay away from cliffs.

Wooley rolled his eyes. “Count on you to tease me and reprimand me after I just wake up.”

Helix laughed and quickly dropped the subject. Wooley looked around, seeing Zeke was now awake and Choss was softly whispering to him, but the two youngest teenagers were missing.

“Where are Comet and Tup?” Wooley asked quietly, not wanting to hear anything bad. Helix put a hand on his shoulder. “Comet’s probably almost done with surgery and Tup is in a bacta tank.”

The teenagers didn’t seem to really like that answer, not wanting their brothers to be alone. Choss saw the look on their faces and quickly added, “Arks is with Comet, and Kix is staying with Tup. But I would bet that Fives and Rex aren’t too far behind.”

The teenagers relaxed, practically sinking into their beds. Choss looked down at Zeke and smirked. “No-name was worried about you. Most likely still is.”

Zeke perked up at the sound of his best friend’s ‘name.’ “He was?”

Choss nodded for effect. “We didn’t know if he would stop crying. He finally did towards the end but he was glued to one of our chests. He was numb for the first hour, worryingly emotionless; he wouldn’t talk to any of us.”

Zeke stared at the sheets in guilt. He never liked to upset no-name, it always made him feel so guilty. Choss lifted his chin, giving him a stern glare. “Don’t do that, Zeke. Don’t blame yourself. I highly doubt he will hate you for getting caught in a sudden landslide.” 

Zeke nodded and shifted further under the blankets, welcoming the warmth. He heard Jake yawn and chuckled, “How the hell are you tired, Jake?”

Jake glared at him but it didn’t look very menacing. “Leave me alone, Zeke.”

The medics chuckled as Zeke childishly stuck his tongue out at Jake. But Zeke had to admit that he was tired as well and the older clones could see it.

“You all have minor concussions, except your’s is bad, Jake. So go to sleep,  _ vod’ikas. _ We’ll watch over you,” Concept suggested, already pulling the sheets higher up around Jake. Jake sleepily leaned into Concept, nuzzling closer. 

Concept leaned a little closer to Jake. “I’m going to wake you up every once and a while so we don’t repeat what happened earlier.” Jake sleepily nodded, golden orbs falling closed, unable to keep them open any longer.

Soon the teenagers all fell asleep. Choss cocked his head down at Zeke. “If only they could stay this cute when they’re awake.”

Helix snorted, “I beg to differ. Wooley is always this cute.”

Concept raised a hand halfway. “I also beg to differ, Jake is adorable whether he is asleep or awake.”

Choss grumbled but still looked fondly at his teenager. “Zeke is always snappy and talkative when he’s awake. The only time he's quiet is either when he is calming down from an episode or he is sleeping. That’s it.”

Concept sighed, cupping the side of Jake’s face. “This one is always quiet. We wish he would talk more around the others but he just doesn’t. At first, we thought that he had some type of speech disorder, but once he’s alone with everyone in our Alpha Company he starts to talk more and he  _ likes _ to talk.”

Helix frowned sadly. “Poor kid. Is there any reason why he doesn’t like to talk to people?”

Concept shrugged. “We don’t really know for sure. We’re guessing that either his batchmates weren’t exactly nice to him or the trainers made him not want to talk much. We’re too afraid to ask him in case he tries to push us away after.”

Helix shot Concept a reassuring look. “He might just be shy, but he may come around eventually. Wooley was shy at first but he came out of his shell.”

Concept gave the older medic a smile. “Thanks, Helix. You’re probably right.”

They looked to Choss and saw a smirk on his face. Zeke had moved closer to him, nuzzling the hand that was in his hair. “I am so using this for blackmail.”

“Don’t be mean.”

“Shut up, Helix,” Choss smirked.

* * *

  
  


Two hours passed by, Kix had moved from leaning his back against the back of the console to sitting on the floor, one arm resting straight across his knee. Tup had been floating for the last couple of hours. Silent. Asleep. Reminding Kix of a dead brother. 

Kix shook his head and closed his eyes again. He couldn't get those damn negative thoughts out of his mind. Of Tup dead on that cave floor. Cold. Alone. Or not quite alone, but still without his older brothers. Without Fives and Rex. It scared Kix just thinking about it. However, he reminded himself that in that tank, Tup was alive and well, healing in fact. He had nothing to worry about. 

Kix checked the time on his wrist comm and sighed. Eleven more minutes until Tup was let out. 

The double doors opened. Kix thought it was the nurses and doctor who had come to check on Tup, but instead, it was Captain Rex and Fives. 

"Rex? Fives? What are two doing here?" Kix stood up and waited for them to walk over. "Not that I am not happy to see you two." 

Rex and Fives slowed down once they were far enough into the room to see Tup. Rex looked at the medic. Fives' eyes were frozen on the tank in front of them. A soft eerie blue glow broke through the darkness, almost like an aquarium. Shadows slowly danced across the floor. "General Skywalker allowed us to come here," Rex explained. Kix nodded in understanding. 

Rex turned his eyes from Kix to the tank. His eyes drooped sadly. Kix's face saddened as well at the sight of Tup's guardian staring up at him like that. Sad. Relieved. Anxious. All the emotions a guardian shouldn’t feel while looking at their kid. It broke Kix's heart. 

"He's going to be okay," Rex said, making it sound like a choked up question. 

Kix slowly approached the two and stood beside them, staring up at the young clone inside of the tank. “Yes, he will be. We have 11 minutes left before the tank drains,” Kix tells them, looking to the Captain.

Captain Rex nodded. “Good.”

Fives walked up to the tank quietly, much closer than he was before, and placed his hand on the glass. His breath fogged it up. 

Kix watched silently as Rex prompted, “Fives?”

Fives didn’t answer. Instead, he rested his forehead against the glass. A soft sound left his lips, almost like a breathy sob, and Rex hurried forward to place his hand on Fives’ shoulder. Kix half turned his eyes away and then decided at the last minute to go over to the console and keep tabs on the time. 

Fives turned a bit and looked Rex in the eyes. The Captain could make out the misty look in them. “Rex, I…” Fives trailed off, staring into Rex’s clouded eyes. “I don't…” Fives looked back up at the tank again and stared at Tup’s body. He was unconscious. Silent. Not laughing with that adorable laugh that would make him and Rex laugh along. 

The warm glass separated Fives from his kid. Their kid. Keeping him from hugging him, holding him, comforting him. Then Fives suddenly remembered how Tup almost died in that cold tunnel. Fives remembered Tup’s blue-tinted lips. His nearly empty eyes. His cold skin. And one lone tear crept along down his face at the horrid memory.

Rex, without looking at Tup like Fives did, slowly turned his cyare to look at him. “Fives, talk to me.”

Fives trembled, biting his trembling lip. “I keep thinking about how our kid almost died. We...We almost lost him,  _ again.  _ We keep almost losing him, over and over and over again, and I couldn’t do a single thing..not a goddamn thing to  _ help  _ him.” Fives choked on ‘help’ and started to cry, like, outright cry. “And what if  _ one  _ day might be the day it’s not an ‘almost,’” Fives inhaled sharply and exhaled on the last saying, ”I can’t, Rex, I don’t-”

Rex didn’t hesitate on pulling Fives into a tight, comforting hug. He didn’t say anything at first, just letting Fives cry into his shoulder. He didn’t know really how to respond when Fives was so upset like this. He didn’t want to say the wrong thing and push Fives over the edge.

“Shhhhh, shhhhh,” Rex crooned in his ear, still not looking at Tup’s form. He held Fives tight as he sobbed, thinking of an answer. This had been one of many close calls with their kid and Rex wasn’t sure they could handle anymore.

“I am so  _ tired  _ of always feeling so  _ useless _ ,” Fives grits through clenched teeth. Tears stung his eyes. 

Rex gripped Fives’ hip. “Stop it. You’re not useless. Not to me and not to Tup. We couldn’t do anything to help them.  _ I _ couldn’t do anything. Please, don’t be so self-critical of yourself. I’ll only lose you that way. And I can’t lose you, Fives.”

Fives took in Rex’s scent. Normally it would calm him down, but it hardly did this time. All his pent-up frustration was too powerful and it took on the form of angry tears and the tightening of his fists on Rex’s backplates. “It’s my fault, Rex!” Fives squeezed his eyes shut and huffed, backing away from the hug. He opened his eyes and the bridge of his nose crinkled up in self-hatred. “If I had been watching him, or at least kept him close to us instead of letting him walk off with the others, then he wouldn’t be like this.” Fives swiftly pointed up at Tup angrily, feeling all of his emotions bubble up. “He would be okay!”

Rex stared silently. Fives tilted his head to the side and lowered his hand. “Someone needs to take responsibility, Rex. I could  _ never  _ blame this on you because it wasn’t your fault. I p-promised myself I would watch Tup and things keep happening to him, and it’s always when I am supposed to be watching him, so it’s my fault, and my fault alone.”

Fives felt more tears stream down his face, puffing up his eyes and cheeks, burning him like poison. Just hearing himself say it was even more heartbreaking.  _ What kind of guardian can’t protect their own kid?  _ Fives hugged himself, avoiding Rex’s sympathetic gaze.  _ Don’t look at me like that. I don’t deserve it.  _

“I-I-I am really s-sorry that I suck at keeping Tup s-safe.” Fives wiped his tears and then he started to cry all over again, feeling this invisible heavy weight on his chest.  _ Look at this. I am so pathetic. I keep crying. I can’t even stop. The hell is wrong with me? Stars, this is embarrassing. Stop. Please stop crying. _

Tup, amidst all of his subconscious, swore he could hear someone crying. It was distant and deep like he was in something made out of glass.  _ Who’s crying? _ He wondered.

Rex was frozen where he was, not expecting this from Fives. The ARC was usually always confident and didn’t show ‘weakness’ in his facade unless he was only with Rex where he could safely fall apart. This was scaring Rex a small bit; he had never heard Fives say anything like this. Rex took a small, hesitant step to Fives, testing the boundaries. Fives didn’t show any sign of wanting Rex to stop moving so the Captain took another step closer to his ARC trooper. And another and another until he was right in front of his boyfriend.

Fives quickly shut his eyes so he wouldn’t have to see Rex’s eyes. Rex placed his hands on Fives’ hips, pulling him the smallest bit closer. Then he slid his hands up the ARC’s front until he was cradling Fives’ head. His thumb brushed Fives’ wet cheekbone, trying to coax him to open his eyes. Fives shook his head, able to tell what Rex wanted him to do and he didn’t want to do it.

“Fives, look at me please?” Rex was soft when he asked his question.

Fives swallowed the tears back and his eyes fluttered open, staring into Rex’s. They observed each other before Rex started again, “This was  _ not _ your fault. And I will say it as many times as I need until you believe me.”

Fives shook his head pitifully, but Rex stopped him by gripping his chin. “If I thought you were a danger to Tup or didn’t keep him safe, I would’ve kept him away from you. But I have not, and will not do that, ever. Because I know you love Tup as much as me and I know you would  _ never _ let him be in danger on purpose.”

Fives stared at him silently. He didn't say a single word. Rex's words echoed in the back of his head like a broken record.  _ "It wasn't your fault." "If you were a danger to Tup I would've kept him away from you. But I have not." "Until you believe me." Believe him. Believe him. It's not your fault. But it is. But it's not! Listen to him,  _ Fives' thoughts raged on internally.  _ Just…relax. Think about it. Would you have known that that landslide would've happened? You truly thought it was safe, didn't you? Yeah. But the landslide was unexpected. None of you saw it coming. You or Rex or anyone else. You were all caught off guard, including Tup and the others. So…believe Rex. Believe your cyare.  _ Fives looked down at the floor and blinked.  _ He's right. Tup is safe now, that's all that matters. _

__ Fives sniffled softly and looked up into Rex's eyes again. Fives looked up at Tup briefly before sighing. He leaned forward and tapped his forehead against Rex's, content with the skin to skin contact. "Okay. I believe you, Rex. I..I am sorry for crying and…g-getting all.." Fives waved his hand, "worked up."

Rex smiled softly at him, still holding his head in his hands. “You have nothing to apologize for. You’ve seen me lose my shit and get worked up multiple times  _ cyar’ika. _ I still love you, even if you cry for hours.”

Fives chuckled through the tears, wiping them away with the back of his hand. Rex took his hands off his head and moved them to his hips, squeezing gently. Fives took a deep breath, leaning his forehead on Rex’s again. Rex let him lean on him, then pulled him into a tight, proper hug.

Fives pulled away after a minute, slowly rebuilding his pride and dignity back up again, and then a high-pitched beeping sound came from something behind them, followed by a gasp from Kix.

"What's that?" Rex asked, looking worried. Fives looked at Kix with an equally worried expression. They both heard the sound of rushing bubbles and turned to look up at the glass tank. Bubbles rippled up from Tup's nostrils, indicating that he was breathing hard. 

"What's happening? Kix!" Fives twisted around and ran over to the console. 

"Fives, calm down. He's just starting to wake up." Kix glanced up at the worried ARC trooper and then back down at the console. "The time is 1 minute and 20 seconds and counting."

Rex gasped, filled with a mix of relief and excitement, with his back turned to Kix and Fives, now looking up at Tup. Fives turned around and then felt his eyes burn at the sight. 

Tup was slowly blinking. 

Rex and Fives both dashed over to the glass and pressed themselves up against it, anxious to hold their boy again. In the background, Kix could be heard comm'ing the doctor to come back into the room again. 

"Tup? Tup, can you hear us?" Fives asked. Tup stared at the weird, wavering figures behind the glass. They had their hands pressed up against it, staring up at him, eyes filled with excitement and anticipation. 

Tup tried to open his mouth but found that something's blocking it, and his nose too. He was breathing though so that was good. 

"I don't…I don't know if he can hear us, love," Rex told Fives. 

Rex watched Fives' face shift into a cute pout.  _ Oh, he's adorable.  _ Rex placed his hand over Fives on top of the glass. Fives looked at him, eyes wide questioningly, then he smiled.

"Come back to us, Tup," Fives said with determination, looking back up with a smile. "You fight this. You wake up. And you come back to us right now, or so help me you won't play sabacc for a week."

Rex let out a joyful, rollicking laugh that rumbled through his chest. "What? A week? I'd say a month!"

Fives eyes him and smirked. "Oh? Why a month, Rex? Would you like to share with the class?"

Tup's body visibly twitched. Fives snickered at that, "I think that got a reaction out of him! You saw that?"

Rex shook his head from side to side in good-hearted amusement. "Ah, yes yes. I don't think he liked that very much. He's obsessed with gambling."

The couple's shared chuckling was interrupted by the sound of the doors sliding open and the sound of the doctor and nurses entering the room. 

"Thank you, Medic Kix for contacting me. Ladies, prepare for the bacta release," The female doctor said, preparing to release the bacta fluid from the tank. 

“Oh, I am ready,” Fives responded with a lopsided grin. 

Rex smacked him on the shoulder pad and laughed, “She wasn’t talking to you.” Fives shrugged though, still smiling.

Kix moved to the side to stay out of the doctor’s way. Rex and Fives backed away from the bacta tank and waited to see what would happen. The nurses got on either side of the front of the glass and waited patiently. The doctor pressed a few buttons on the console to check Tup's vitals. 

"Heartbeat is strong. Very strong. His temperature is back up to the correct level. 98.4° Fahrenheit. We can begin the release process." The doctor pressed a red button on the left button quadrant of the console, initiating drainage. 

The tank made a hissing sound at the bottom. Then the water level visibly started to lower. 

Fives looked at Rex and subtly interlocked their fingers together. Rex smiled at him and then looked back up at the machine. 

The water level reached under Tup's chest. The black tentacles on his back started to twist, slowly lowering him down to the bottom for the tank. Tup panted hard, which could be seen by the fog on the inside of the mask, not exactly enjoying the obstruction in his throat. It felt too thick and wide. Quite annoying if you ask him. The water lowered to the young one's thighs, and not for long it was to his ankles. 

"Preparing to open doors in 15 seconds," The doctor alerted them of what's to come. "Troopers, please stand clear of the tank and let the nurses take him down first before you come close."

"Yes, ma'am," Kix, Rex, and Fives answered in unison. 

Once the water was just at the bottom of Tup's feet and the tentacles were done lowering him down, the doctor commanded the glass doors to slide open from the front to the back. Tup remained suspended. The first nurse stepped up onto the floor of the tank while the second nurse walked over to a bin beside the console and grabbed a towel from it. 

The first nurse turned on the light in her hand, eyeing Tup. Next, she raised her hand up and slowly moved the light from left to right in front of Tup's eyes, testing his reaction to the light. 

Tup's pupils dilate, growing smaller under the light's rays. 

"Positive reaction to the light. He's coming to. Traela, help me take him out," The first nurse said to the second one. 

The second nurse got onto the platform as well and handed the towel to her partner before standing behind Tup. She hovered her hand above the button on the right of the tentacles and waited. Her partner took off Tup's mask. Then she gently wrapped her hand around the tube coming out of his mouth and started to pull it out. 

Tup coughed, gagging at the odd and terrible sensation of something crawling up his throat. He cried out in discomfort when the sensation seemed to prolong to him before it disappeared. 

Fives and Rex fidgeted in place at the sound. Their fatherly instincts spiking. 

"Shhhh. It's okay. It's alright," The first nurse cooed softly, dropping the mask and tubes onto the floor below with a metallic thud. 

Tup gagged again and then calmed down. He panted softly, only seeing odd shadows in front of him. 

The first nurse shushed him again and then nodded to her partner. The second nurse pressed a button on the right side of the tentacles and the tentacles retracted from his back, letting him topple forward right into the first nurse's waiting arms. 

Tup went with a tired huff.

Rex and Fives both took an aborted step forward, hands twitching by their sides. 

The first nurse wrapped the towel around Tup's trembling body and whispered comforting words into his ear when he made this whimpering sound. The second circled around the two and helped her partner half-carry Tup down the metal steps. 

They laid him down on the floating circle that's lowered onto the floor and checked out a couple more things before looking up at the older clones. 

"You may approach," The first one allowed. "Just be careful not to overwhelm him. His senses will be heightened at this time because of the bacta, especially his skin. Since he has his blacks on, he won't feel, but mind his hands please."

Rex and Fives both nodded, then slowly walked over to kneel on Tup's left side. The second nurse happily moved out of their way and went over to the doctor's side to report their findings of Tup's wellbeing. 

Rex mindfully placed a hand on Tup's forehead and brushed his fingers back, playing with Tup's hair while Fives hesitantly placed his hand on his right hand. The young teenager purred quietly at the feeling of someone's gentle hand on his forehead. Tup was slowly pulled from peaceful semi-consciousness by the light fingers playing with his hair. He heard the voices of two men speaking at a low volume, but he wasn’t able to catch anything. He shivered when an odd gust of cold air warmed over him, trying to curl up in a ball on his left side to get warmer. 

He heard quiet chuckling. Without looking, Tup could tell who was holding his hand and who was playing with his loose strands. Fives and Rex. He opened his golden eyes slowly, which tried to adjust to the light. Tup glanced up and saw two scary shadows. 

“Look who’s awake,” Fives smiled at him, not that Tup could see that. Rex smiled along with him.

Flashes of the day came flooding back as Tup became more coherent and his chest suddenly felt tight. He turned his head into Fives' thigh, breathing picking up.

“Easy, ad’ika. We’re right here,” Rex calmly soothed him, reaching over to hold his other hand. Tup started to cry softly, totally stressed out and exhausted and he couldn’t stop the tears. Fives carefully pulled Tup up and rested him against his left arm, then his right hand traveled up and down his spine. 

“Shhhhh, shhhhhh. We’ve got you, love. You’re okay,” Fives whispered, pulling Tup closer. They let Tup cry, understanding he just needed to get it out of his system

Tup felt so scared. He knew it was his buirs above him, but he could barely see them. They were just shadows hovering above his body, scaring him so badly that he slammed his eyes shut. He didn't want to see those shadows in the place of his buirs, speaking with their voices. He wanted to see them right now! And their touch did nothing to help with his anxiety. It made his skin crawl. It hurt, but he wanted to feel their touch so badly that he let them. And they let him cry. 

Tup cried and cried until he couldn't anymore. Until his tears dried up like a drought in the desert. Then he slowly opened his eyes and saw that his vision got a bit better, now the two shadows above were wisps of color. Tup could just make out a familiar face through the darkness.  _ Fives,  _ Tup recognized joyfully. 

" _ Buir _ ," Tup croaked tiredly, leaning against his hand until Fives' hand drifted down to his cheek. Tup shivered at the feeling. His skin felt itchy at the touch. 

Fives' eyes widened at the nickname. Tup doesn't normally use the name unless necessary. Whenever he did though, Fives always got so emotional afterward. At this moment, he was definitely emotional. 

"Tup'ika," Fives said with a breathy gasp, chuckling happily, then his bottom lip trembled. 

Rex felt his eyes burn at the sight of Fives trying to hold together in front of their kid. Rex felt a surge of happiness and pride well up in his chest. 

"Are you okay? Can you hear us?" Fives asked, thumb stroking Tup's cheekbone. Tup squinted at him and then shook his head. Fives sighed, pouting again. 

Rex chuckled at him, "Patience Fives. Patience." Tup turned his head to look straight at Rex. Rex realized that Tup must've not seen him until now. 

Tup coughed lightly. " _ Buir? _ " He trembled slightly and smiled. Rex chuckled, nodding at the younger trooper. 

Kix crossed his arms over his chest and happily watched the couple cradle their kid in their arms.

"You're here?" Tup smiled. 

"Of course we are kiddo. Why wouldn't we be?" Fives asked. 

Tup's eyes flicked from Fives' to Rex's. "Where's Kix?"

"Over here kid," Kix said. 

Tup blinked up at his  _ Buirs _ , still waiting for an answer. 

"Huh? You didn't hear Kix?" Fives asked.

"What? Oh, no. Did he say something?"

Fives pointed over to Kix to show Tup where he was. Tup smiled upon seeing the medic. 

"Oh! Hiii~" Tup waved at him. Then his hand limply fell back onto his stomach. "I'm tired."

Kix chuckled, walking over, "Yeah, you will be for the next couple of hours. But don't worry Tup, you'll be back on your feet in no time."

The doctor stepped back over, not really wanting to interrupt the moment but she had information to give. Fives and Rex saw her out of the corner of their eyes and turned to look at her. She smiled brightly at the youngest trooper. “How are you feeling?”

She was close enough to the point where Tup could hear her even with his senses being all jacked up. Tup still couldn’t believe that this woman was as nice as she was; he expected  _ all _ the doctors to be mean like the Kaminoans. “B-better. Everything is just….” Tup couldn’t describe what he was feeling.

Her smile didn’t falter. “The bacta has made all your senses overstimulated. As you can probably tell, the most sensitive are sight, hearing, and touch. Your sight and hearing should start to gradually come back in about….three minutes. Touch, well, that’ll take another hour or two to go away completely.”

Tup nodded, still attached to Fives’ shoulder, just wanting to be held by his  _ Buirs _ . The doctor could tell that the troopers needed to be alone for a minute. She took her leave and left with her nurses following her. Tup immediately started to nuzzle closer to the older clones, burying his face into Fives’ neck. Fives’ arms tightened around him but still kept his grip light. 

Tup peeked at Rex, his vision almost fully back, and he saw that Rex wasn’t close enough for his liking. He held his hand out, beckoning him closer. Rex chuckled and scooted closer, grabbing Tup’s hand again. Tup was practically purring at the comforting touches coming from his father figures, welcoming the touch even if it was a little uncomfortable.

He remembered why they were there and why Fives and Rex were acting so affectionate with him (not that they weren’t affectionate with him when they were away from any Admirals or clone battalions they weren’t familiar with). “I’m sorry I scared you,” Tup whispered, throat still sore from where the tube was inserted in his windpipe.

Fives and Rex exchanged looks and sighed softly. Fives’ fingers played softly with Tup’s damp hair. “You don’t have anything to be sorry for. You couldn't have known the landslide would happen. And neither did Comet or Jake or the others.”

“Still, I scared you,” Tup mumbled into Fives’ shoulder.

Rex took a turn to explain to Tup. “Yes, we were scared. I know you don’t like to scare us but we understood that it wasn’t your fault. Well, it took a little effort to convince this one,” Rex glanced at Fives. The ARC rolled his eyes, not liking that Rex was ratting him out.

Tup pulled back slightly. “What?”

Fives shook his head, still keeping Tup against his chest. “Nothing kid. All that matters is that you and the others are safe. And that we have you back.”

Tup giggled and hugged Fives’ waist tightly, feeling Rex press against his back. Rex’s arms wrapped around Tup’s ribs, still being subconsciously mindful of his touch on his child’s body even though the doctor clearly explained over his blacks were fine. Better safe than sorry. 

Tup happily accepted the extra warmth, still a little cold. 

“Are the others okay?” The teenager asked the other troopers, mostly asking Kix because he was a medic and probably heard from the other medics.

Kix smiled gently. “They’re all okay. Comet will be done with surgery on his knee soon and should be moved into a room with the others. The doctors will probably move you in there soon as well.”

Tup nodded, a little worried that his boyfriend had to get surgery, but he pushed the worry aside, knowing that the other medics wouldn't let anything happen to him.

“When can I see Comet?” Tup asked quietly, shooting puppy eyes at all of them.

Kix gave into them, knowing that it wasn’t worth it to fight Tup in a match of glares and puppy eyes. “Soon, kiddo. But he won’t be awake for a while.”

Tup sighed, letting his muscles relax for once, no longer afraid or needed to stay alert. FIves, Rex, and Kix could do it for him. Tup let out a small yawn, trying to hide it. And it turned out he did it well because they didn’t comment on it.

The door opened again to reveal one of the nurses stepping into the room. She had a kind smile as she approached them. “We would like to move him to the recovery room with the other troopers; you’ll be able to accompany him. Does that work for all of you?”

All four of the Torrent troopers nodded, giving the kind woman a smile. Her smile widened even more as she stepped up to Tup, pressing a few buttons on the datapad that was attached to the circle Tup was laying on. It rose into the air and the three older troopers on either side of him stood up along with him

“Alright then. Let’s get moving.”

* * *

  
  


Comet blearily opened his eyes, feeling drowsy from the pain meds. At first, his body felt as light as a feather, but then reality came crashing down when he moved his right leg a centimeter. Comet lifted the blanket around his waist, frowning, only to see a row of stitches on his knee. His fingers twitched to feel another row on the back of his knee. And a black brace was around his leg that took up half of his thigh and most of his calf. 

“Fucking dammit,” Comet sighed, stroking his forehead in frustration and exhaustion. 

Comet heard chuckling around him and craned his head up to see who was laughing at him. His lips twitched up into a small smile. Zeke, Jake, and Wooley were sitting on the left side of his bed, grinning like absolute  _ di’kuts _ . In front of the bed stood Captain Rex and ARC trooper Fives. And in the corners of the room stood the medics, trying to group up to make space and not overwhelm the poor boy.

“Har har.” Comet swiftly flipped them off.

“Shut up Com’,’” Zeke grunted, shoving his shoulder playfully. Comet made an ‘ack’ sound and glared up at him.

Wooley rolled his eyes at the two and sighed. Jake was smiling shyly, waving at the Wolfpack member.

“You were asleep for a long time,” Jake commented.

Comet rolled his eyes. “Yeah. And I am about to go back to sleep too.” He closed his eyes once again.

“I don’t think you wanna do that,” Wooley mumbled. Comet could hear his smile in his voice.

Comet raised an eyebrow in his ‘non-sleep’ and wondered why he would say that. Not much thought went into that before Comet felt a small warm hand on his which brought him right back. Comet quickly opened his eyes and looked down at his right hand. He recognized that soft, delicate hand out of millions anywhere. “Tup.” Comet looked up at him and smiled gleefully, happy to see his boyfriend sitting beside him, looking so well, tan skin glowing again, pink lips pulled up into a loving, warm smile back. 

“Hello, love. How are you feeling?” Tup asked softly, eyes roaming about his body before making his way back up to his eyes again.

Comet frowned, thinking hard, still pushing away the fog in his mind. “I think my knee is so numb to the point where I can’t feel it and honestly I would prefer that than the pain. Other than that, I feel fine. What about you?”

“I am feeling fine! I don’t feel cold anymore. I stopped shivering a while ago. And I am feeling very peckish right now,” Tup responded, smiling. 

Zeke made a groaning sound and rubbed his stomach.  _ “Brooo~ Sameee~” _ Jake’s stomach rumbles on cue, turning heads, causing him to blush pink like he farted or something.

_ “Sorry~” _ He apologized, raising a hand up to block one side of his face out of embarrassment.

Tup laughs, “That is a sign that I am not the only one who’s really hungry.”

“I would be surprised if you five weren’t hungry,” Concept jumped in. “You were in the caves for at least thirteen hours.”

Comet groaned, “Greaaat. Now I’m hungry. If only we had seven able bodies to give us food.”

Tup chuckled cutely and then Comet developed an idea. Comet pulled Tup a little closer and whispered in his ear, “How good are your puppy eyes right now? I know Jake is well enough to  _ destroy _ Concept but can you break through to Kix?”

Tup smirked. “Need you even ask?” Tup brought his knees to his chest to make himself look smaller and possibly even younger and stared at the adults through his eyelashes. “How much do you love us?” Without taking his eyes off of their older brothers, he snapped his fingers in Jake’s general direction, hoping the teenager got the hint.

Jake had a sly smirk that faded into a light pout. “Yeah. We’re your precious little brothers that you love dearly...right?”

Wooley picked up on it and looked like a kicked puppy. “But we understand if you are too busy to grant us the simple right to have food.” He looked down at his lap.

Zeke was struggling to not laugh but kept strong. “Yeah, we only survived an eighty-foot l by some miracle, and we were tested by the torturous elements, and Tup almost died. Nothing major.”

No one moved to fulfill the teenager’s request. Comet took it upon himself to deliver the final blow in their brother’s mental armor, staring at Arks. “Please, just feed us. If Wolffe were here, he would get us food.” Arks shifted, the first one of them to move since they started this conversation. Bringing up their other brothers was a cold move. But a well-paced move indeed.

If someone had walked in right now, it would’ve been a comical scene to them. Five teenage troopers staring at their older brothers like puppies begging for pieces of well-seasoned bacon. It was fucking adorable. 

“Psh, don’t look at me kids,” Fives snorted, pretending to be completely immune to their puppy eyes, earning a smack in the back of the head from Rex.

The medics blinked, knowing they were the only ones who could get food brought up there to the teenagers, and the teenagers’ puppy eyes were fucking working, so all the younger medics looked to Helix, the oldest medic. 

Helix groaned and raised his commlink to his mouth and started talking.

All the teenagers started to laugh and cheer, patting one another on the shoulders. The younger medics, Rex, and Fives laughed at their rowdiness. Helix glared at all of them and left the room, still speaking into the comm. The teenagers watched him leave and then their cheers trailed off into deafening silence. They either suddenly found their hands very interesting, the sheets, or the ceiling. Jake was the first one to speak, breaking the ice, “Well….today sucked balls by the way.”

_ “Yeahhhh,  _ like someo-”

“Shut the fuck up Zeke,” Tup hissed like a cat, glaring knives at him

Comet and Zeke both burst out laughing. Rex and Fives glared murderously at their kid and grunted, getting his attention. Tup glanced at them, then sighed, trying very hard not to roll his eyes.

Wooley snorted at them and whispered to his fellow young comrades, “It’s also safe to say the others aren’t going to let us out of their sight once we're released from the medbay.”

Jake went into deep thought before taking his turn to speak, “Today wasn’t totally horrible! I mean yeah, I still have a concussion, Comet had a dislocated knee, and Tup had hypothermia, but look on the bright side! I’ll get better soon! Comet’s knee’s gonna heal up. Tup is warm again. We’re all out of the caves.” Jake smiled happily. Concept was surprised that Jake was even talking this much. It seemed the group of youngsters were good influences on him, bringing out the best in him. “And...well, I wouldn’t want to be stuck with any other teenagers.” Jake finished.

That was the longest sentence they have possibly ever heard from Jake. Zeke looked at Jake with a genuinely pleased smile. “Awww you do love us.”

Jake rolled his eyes. “I try to be nice….and you ruin the mood.”

The teenagers met eyes and let easy, warm chuckles escape them. Tup laid his head on Comet’s shoulder, realizing the bad may have been bad, but at least he had his brothers with him.

* * *

Tup and Comet were the first ones to walk off the speeder transport, stepping on the Star Destroyer port platform, taking in the sight of their Generals and other brothers standing in close proximity.

Comet had to get a little help from Tup seeing as his knee was in a very restricting brace but at least he was allowed to walk. The doctors had put some bacta on his knee to jumpstart the healing process. Arks stayed close to him as they walked. As soon as Comet had reached the Wolfpack he was pulled into a fierce hug by Blitz, and Tup backed away carefully, going to his own squad and General. Soon all the Wolfpack members had surrounded him in a hug, and if some of them started crying he didn’t say anything. He was released and came face-to-face with his General.

“ _ Buir _ ,” Comet greeted softly, letting the older man hold him lightly.

“I’m glad you are alright, my son.” Plo’s voice was soft as he spoke to the teenager.

Wooley and Helix were next off the transport and Wooley practically collapsed into Cody’s arms once he was close enough. Cody didn’t hesitate to hug him close, whispering in his ear, “We’ve got you. You’re okay.” Wooley sighed in relief, feeling Boil run his fingers through his hair. The others shuffled around until they were all comfortably hugging the teenager. Wooley tiredly lifted his eyes, seeing General Kenobi give him a soft smile and he returned one.

Jake and Concept were fourth. Jake was pulled into a slightly rough embrace by Bailey who led him towards the others. Jake felt a warm hand on his shoulder blade and looked up, face-to-face with Aayla, who had a concerned but soft look in her eyes. Jake leaned into her a small bit, thanking her silently.

“Don’t ever do that again, Jak’ika,” Bailey ordered out loud, nuzzling his hair. Jake cuddled him back, placing his head on his shoulder.

“I’ll try.”

Zeke was the last person to step off the transport with Choss. All the other teens were being hugged by their squads. When he was about thirty feet away from his brothers he connected eyes with his unnamed best friend and there were tears in his eyes. _Oh_ _boy_ , Zeke sighed mentally. 

‘No-name’ stepped out from their squad and started to cross the wide distance between him and Zeke. Limit took an aborted step forward to stop him, but Fang raised a hand cooly and shook his head. Limit’s and Fang’s eyes met. A silent message sent between them. Limit leaned back and sighed, knowing this wasn’t going to go well, knowing ‘no-name.”’

The closer ‘No-name’ got to Zeke, the clearer his facial expression became. His face was void of any emotion, yet his chocolate brown eyes were misty. An eerie shadow overhung his features, making it nearly impossible to read him. He reached Zeke, invading his space, and punched him hard in the shoulder while yelling, “You fucking jerk!!”

Everyone within hearing range looked over at the abrupt sound. Tup and the other teenagers subtly watched from their respective squads.

"Seventy?" Zeke stared at him, shoulder throbbing.

‘No-name’ pursed his lips and shook his head fervently. Tears stung his eyes, but never fell, not yet.  _ "W-Why? _ ” He asked, voice trembling. He clenched his fists by his side and yelled, “Why didn't you fucking take me with you?! You fucking…” ‘No-name’ his raised shaky fist beside his cheekbone and then clenched his eyes shut, lowering his shaky hand to his side. 

He looked back up into Zeke’s eyes again. Eyebrows forced together into a pronounced frown. “You left me, Zeke. You could've died down there alone, ya know! I would've lost another batchmate and...and..did you already forget?!" His glare practically cut Zeke with its sharp-edged, unspoken emotions. ‘No-name’ heaved in angry breaths. The bridge of his nose crinkled furiously.

Zeke had been on the receiving end of ‘No-name’s’ anger before. He was used to his protectiveness at this point and he understood why he was justifiably upset. So, Zeke shook his head and proceeded to answer calmly, "No, of course, I didn't." 

‘No-name’ immediately barked out, "Recite it to me! Recite the promise we made to each other." Zeke nodded. 

“I promise that I will stay by your side, as your only batchmate,” Zeke recited the promise they made almost a year ago, never breaking eye contact with his best friend.

Fives and Echo both clenched their fists.  _ They’re just like us. The only batchmates alive with one another.  _

“I promise that I will never leave you behind, as your batchmate. I will never forget you. If we are separated, I’ll even meet you halfway.” Zeke watched ‘No-name’s’ shoulders shudder. ‘No-Name’ was...crying, hard, bottom lip trembling. He slowly wrapped his arms around himself and half-turned to the left. Zeke couldn’t see his face so he instinctively hesitated for a minuscule second, then reached out for ‘No-name’s’ hand.

‘No-name’ flinched, wide eyes staring at nothing. Zeke’s thumb rubbed against his middle knuckles endearingly and said nothing.  _ I’ll wait for him,  _ he thought. 

‘ No-name’ slowly turned to face Zeke again. Zeke let his eyes follow the trail of tears down from his downcasted browns, down his adorably red cheeks, and down to his trembling chin. Zeke fought the urge to brush those damn tears away, maybe to bring some comfort to that distraught, brilliant mind of his. But when their eyes met, it paused all inner thought for a second and forced Zeke to finish that sentence. To finish that promise. To not let it go unfinished or unheard. 

“If there comes a time where we are both in danger, or there’s no way out, that if we die, we will go out together,” He finished reciting the promise with a sad smile, golden eyes looking down into ‘No-name’s’ brown ones. “You and I, we made that promise to one another, and I want you to know one thing Seventy, I don't plan on breaking it, so get it out of that head of yours right now, you hear me?” Zeke’s eyes seemingly glow fiercely on the last word.

‘No-Name’ stared up at him for a second, looked down at their greeted hands, then back up into his eyes once more. Zeke, again, said nothing. Waiting. Eyes crinkled up in patience. No-name’ immediately understood that Zeke was serious because his silence spoke louder than words. So, ‘No-name’ chuckled wetly and closed his eyes for a second, then tilted his head back. Zeke stood straight, huffing with relief at the sound.

“Stars,” ‘No-name’ groaned and snapped back to look Zeke directly in the eyes. “You gave me a fucking heart attack ya know! I didn’t know where you went for one thing. You didn’t say a single word to me. When I heard that you were down there with the others, thousands of thoughts ran rampant and I didn’t know if I was going to see you again or some crazy shit that is completely impossible, by the way!” ‘No-name’ shook his head cutely, frazzled out.

Zeke made an aborted snort and nodded along to ‘No-name’s’ terrified blubbering.

“I thought I lost another fucking batchmate, you asshole! Complete asshole!” ‘No-name’ shoved Zeke back weakly and sniffled again, feeling his eyes burn. 

Zeke started to shush him softly and raised his hands to place them on ‘No-name’s’ biceps, squeezing them. Zeke tilted his head to the side and nodded for the umpteenth time, letting ‘No-Name’ talk himself out.

‘No-name’ noticed his small smile and jabbed a finger up at him, making Zeke let go of his biceps. “Why are you smiling? Tell me why you are smiling! Dammit, Zeke! I actually thought I really lost you this time. Just  _ don’t  _ do that again!” ‘No-name’ smacked him on the shoulder and glared him down murderously. “Or I will literally bring you back from the dead just so then I can punch you!”

Zeke chuckled,  _ “Welll~ _ That would be a wasted opportunity, now wouldn’t it?” ‘No-name’ flabbergasted at that and clenched his jaw, then teared up again.

“That’s not _ funnnyyyyy~” _ ‘No-name’ leaned forward and cried. 

Zeke yanked ‘No-name” back into a tight hug and shushed him. “Shhhh. Shhh. It’s okay, Seventy. I am sorry. Really.” Zeke apologized, rubbing his friend’s back. “It won’t happen again, okay?”

‘No-name’ nodded into his shoulder and croaked, “Okay.”

“There there. There there.” Zeke smiled, sighing quietly.

Tup observed the conversation from the comfort of his brothers’ arms. He smiled as the two clones hugged, still seeing ‘No-name’ crying, but he wasn’t punching Zeke so Tup took that as a win. 

“They’re pretty cute….when one of them isn’t punching the other,” Tup commented quietly, causing the others to laugh. Jesse and Hardcase almost lost their shit from laughing. 

Tup grinned and shuffled closer to his brothers, feeling Echo’s arms tighten around him. Echo dropped his lips to his little brother’s head. “We’re happy you’re safe,  _ vod’ika _ .”

Tup pulled his head away from Echo’s chest and smiled tiredly at him. “So am I.”

Rex and Fives started to lead Torrent back to the barracks on the ship. Fives glared lightly at his kid when Tup opened his mouth to object. “Tup, you fell eighty fucking feet, got hypothermia, and nearly died. I am not letting you out of my sight, so if I’m going to the barracks, so are you.”

Tup pouted but reluctantly followed Fives, curling under his arm. Fives chuckled but didn’t move his arm away. Rex lowered his arm and wrapped it around Tup, one hand resting on his hips. Then he squeezed him tightly. Tup giggled and leaned his head on Rex’s shoulder, letting his brothers guide him back to the barracks, glad this whole ordeal was over with. He was back with his family, safe and sound.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy fucking new year everyone! Angel and I have some great shit planned for this year, so get excited y'all! And I now close the door on this chapter which is the finale of the teenagers' predicament. I hope this was angsty and fluffy enough for everyone! 💙
> 
> Beta reader/Editor-AngelWars (Ao3)
> 
> What do you think or what was your favorite part? Requests?


	42. Chapter 42- The Mute (Pt. 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Comet has been wanting to ask Arks a question but he's been afraid to ask.
> 
> Warning: This chapter has content of sexual assault of a minor along with mental and physical abuse. Please read at your own discretion.

Comet leaned into the gentle hand passing through his hair, curling into the chest he was laying on to the best of his ability while his knee was in a brace; he was still recovering from his ACL surgery. He heard Ace chuckle from the couch across from the one he was laying on.

“Hey, pup, when do I get _my_ boyfriend back?” Ace asked, making the other members of the Wolfpack snort in amusement. Comet flipped him off, cuddling closer to Blitz. The sharpshooter was the one who was holding him after pulling the teenager down to lay with him a couple of minutes ago. Comet wasn’t going to refuse such a comforting offer from an older brother.

“He’s the one that pulled me down, Ace. I’m not going to refuse; it would be rude.” The others could hear the smirk in the teenager’s voice.

They stayed like that, just enjoying each others’ presence. It was peaceful in the rec room, with no stress or grief hanging over them. Comet glanced at each of his older brothers from the corner of his eye, thinking about them analytically.

Sinker and Boost were the first two that his eyes ran over. The two of them were like two peas in a pod; practically twins in Comet’s mind. The reason Comet considered them twins was that they sometimes were complete opposites. But even when they acted the opposite of one another, they still kept their bond intact. Much like Fives and Echo, or Rex and Cody. They were always nice to Comet (except in the beginning) but they were also very playful with him. 

Ace was next to them, stretched out on the couch, taking most of it up. While the fiery clone could be blunt and come off strong, deep down he was nice and cared about his brothers.

Blitz was the nicer one of the two of them. Blitz never hesitated to show Comet affection while Ace only did it rarely. Blitz would balance Ace’s bluntness out with his kindness. Or in other words, he kept Ace in check, but no one mentioned that around Ace though or he’d have their head. Wolffe was sitting on the couch at the other end with Arks in between his knees. The first time Comet had laid eyes on the Commander he knew he was fiery, intense, and would not hesitate to teach someone a lesson. Comet had sadly been on the receiving end of Wolffe’s punishment during his earlier days in the Wolfpack and had ended up with a partially dislocated shoulder. He quickly learned that it was not a good idea to piss Wolffe off.

Then finally, there was Arks. Good ‘ol medic who would do anything to help his brothers; it was in his nature. But...if Come thought really hard, he didn’t really know anything about his brother. Sure, he knew him, but he didn’t know anything about his past, and Comet was so very curious as to why his medic was mute. No one in their squad had told him, and Comet was too nervous to ask.

Comet had been trying to work up the courage to ask for a long time but he just couldn’t do it. _Come on, Comet. Just suck it up and ask. Do it while he isn’t stressed._ Comet started fidgeting, a little scared to try.

His fidgeting apparently alerted his brothers because Sinker cocked his head at his little brother. “You okay there?”

Comet nodded, avoiding his gaze. “Y-yeah, but I…” Comet trailed off at the end.

“‘But’ what?” Boost asked, straightening up in his seat. Comet looked up from the couch seeing all his brothers’ eyes on him and he cursed quietly.

“What is it, kid?” Wolffe asked, his tone was a little sharp, telling Comet to start talking or Wolffe would find out one way or another. 

Comet hesitantly met eyes with Arks’ who seemed to be concerned for his younger brother. “I don’t know much about you, Arks,” Comet started with. Arks looked perplexed but motioned for Comet to go on. 

“You don’t speak and because of that I feel disconnected from you somehow. I still love you and you take care of me when I’m hurt or when I was sick, but...I just don’t know anything about you.” Comet sighed, not knowing how to explain what he wanted to say. “And I can’t get this stupid question out of my head. I keep thinking about it and it makes me, somewhat annoyingly, wants to know the truth about everything.”

Comet stared at his hands for a split second. If he backed out now, he could stay in the dark about his brother, but if he asked all the questions he had he could risk making Arks upset or angry. “Arks is a _kriffing_ mystery to me. I don’t know anything about you, no offense if this comes off as blunt,” Comet quickly added at the end sheepishly. 

Arks chuckled a small bit, not offended at all, and he was actually quite amused.

“But all of you seem like you know his past and everything there is to know about him. I’m in the dark about everything. But when’s it my turn?” Comet concluded.

Everyone looked to Arks to see how he would respond. Arks gave the teenager a calculated stare, but it was also an open gaze as well. Arks leaned forward to rest his forearms on his knees. The medic pursed his lips and cocked his head to the side slightly. He raised his hands and signed, “ _I think you’re ready kiddo.”_

Comet looked like a confused puppy and raised a casual hand. “Was it supposed to be that easy? I have more valid points of why I should know,” Comet told the others. It made them chuckle.

Comet turned back to Arks and gave him an almost sympathetic glace. “You don’t have to if you don’t want to. It’s your past and I don’t want to make you uncomfortable. And I don’t want you to feel pressured to tell me.”

Arks shook his head, smiling sadly, a stormy look in his eyes. _“No, you deserve to know. But it’s not a happy story, Comet. It’s pretty bad. I don’t want to scare you or scar you in any way.”_

Comet gulped, wondering how bad it could possibly be. He nodded a small bit, however, and curled even close to Blitz, like he could protect him from Arks’ bad memories.

_“I’m guessing the main thing you’re wondering is why I’m mute. Is that correct?”_

Comet nodded. “But I still want to know everything other than that. I want to know you.” Arks smiled gently at him, appreciating the teenager’s enthusiasm to really get to know him. Then his smile fell as the clock of time rewinded in the back of his clouded, silent mind, starting to remember his time on Kamino, and his battalion before the Wolfpack. It would be painful to relive it all, but the kid deserved to know.

_“If you want me to stop at all, you just say. Just remember you wanted to know, alright?” Comet nodded._

Arks slowly took a breath and his gaze downcasted as he began his tale, _“It started on Kamino during training….”_

* * *

CT-1307 looked straight ahead. Eyes up. Forward. Don’t blink, don’t breathe, don’t falter. _Okay fine, I can blink, I can breathe, but don’t step out of line._ The young cadet refrained from looking from left to right to his young cadet batchmates. They all had the same blank expressions on their faces. Twin brown golds staring forward. Lips pulled into a grim straight line. Red on red, the color of blood they wore. _Cadet training, day 1,095, mark. Today our trainer seems to want to show us something new. It better be worth my time. I am tired of getting taught useless things and then taught a shitload of stuff afterward in medical training._

CT-1307’s ears perked up when he heard a soft sound from above. He couldn't help but tilt his chin up and stare at the ceiling. _Oh, it's raining. Like that's not news or some shit. Can't wait to get drenched again._ CT-1307 heard footsteps coming toward them and snapped back to look straight ahead again. _Oh, look, here comes piss shit,_ CT-1307 grumbles internally when seeing his very tall, mean-looking trainer enter the room and stop to stand in front of the line of 'fine' cadets. 

The mean-ass trainer was a Dathomirian, which made him extra aggressive. Honestly, sometimes the man-made CT-1307 wants to punch him square in the jaw. The man was very aggressive with the clones, making the weakest of them suffer. It ticked CT-1307 off when he did that; he didn’t like people that hurt his brothers.

The man stalked back and forth, observing each and every one of them with a glare. He suddenly shouted to the clones, “Attention!”

 _Not like we already aren’t but okay, have it your way,_ CT-1307 snapped at the adult in his head, but still snapped to attention just like his brothers.

The Dathomirian stopped his pace, still staring at all of them. CT-1307 hated the way the man looked at him, it was plain creepy like he was trying to burn him with his gaze. “Today, we will be going over hand-to-hand combat. If your skills are not up to par, you will suffer dearly because your comrades or I will _not_ be holding back. Am I understood?”

A chorus of “Yes sir!” rang across the room. CT-1307 saw out of the corner of his eyes, the man started to pace but stopped in front of one of the clones. If CT-1307 remembered the order they were lined up in, and he did thank you very much, the trainer paused in front of one of the smaller boys, Eighty-nine, who wasn’t as good in physical tests as the others. The kid was wicked smart but didn’t have much in the strength department.

 _Keep walking, just leave him alone for one day._ It didn’t matter what trainer they were with any day, they always picked on Eighty-nine.

“Trooper, step forward.”

CT-1307 shut his eyes in frustration at his trainer, not his younger brother. He got his emotions under control and kept his eyes forward.

The poor clone was practically shaking as he stood in front of the tall man. He turned his eyes to the ground as the older man directed his attention to his other brothers. “I want all of you to watch and pay close attention. Don’t you dare take your eyes off of this match or there will be hell to pay,” The man ordered with venom in his voice.

The cadet quickly got into a defensive position, not understanding how he was going to even come close to beating the much older and bigger man. The man was not joking when he said that he wasn’t going to hold back on the cadets. He immediately started to throw punches, most of them landing on the small clone. Eighty-nine was able to duck away from a few of them and he actually landed a few punches of his own.

The clone executed a roundhouse kick, hitting the trainer in the hip, making him stumble slightly. The Dathomirian seemed a little shocked but it didn’t show for long. The trainer put him in a body lock, making the clone yelp in what was either shock or pain. CT-1307’s hand twitched, medic instincts kicking in. 

Eighty-nine managed to get an arm free and nailed his elbow into the gut of the other man. The man recoiled, seemingly pissed that the little clone caused him pain. The trainer kicked the clone in the leg, hard, and practically flipped him over his shoulder. Eighty-nine landed on the ground with a sickening thud and all the other cadets couldn't contain their flinches. The cadet that was thrown groaned in pain, not able to move very much.

“As you can tell, the move is very effective on the weak.” The Dathomirian smirked, obviously proud of himself.

Ark glares knives at his trainer, furious that he would even think that move was appropriate to use on cadets at this age. CT-1307 had seen troopers much older than them getting taught this move, but at 14 years old, they weren't taught this move. Not at all. It was dangerous to even try it, but it seemed their trainer was too much of a cruel _di'kut_ to listen to the rules. 

However, as much as CT-1307 wanted to move and help the poor boy, he stayed absolutely still, as still as a statue. _Good soldiers follow orders,_ he repeated in his head. If he moved now and went over to help the other trooper they might both get punished. 

Another pained groan slipped from the lean trooper's lips and-

"Oh shut your _karking_ whining, you damn thing!" The trainer yelled down at the boy. 

CT-1307's fists clenched behind his back, fingers clenching hard. The injured trooper slowly looked up at his brother in line and trembled terribly. 

CT-1307 tensed up, feeling the power of the Eighty-nine’s puppy eyes on him. Then he was filled with this powerful will to protect his brother. _No. I can't abandon my brothers like this. I don't care what anyone else says._

CT-1307 stepped out of line and headed straight over to the trooper, disobeying orders in the process. He kneeled down beside his charge to lend a helping hand to him, but an angry voice stopped him in his tracks. 

“You move one more step, you’re getting punished.”

CT-1307 lifted his eyes to his trainer, staring at him. The trainer crossed his arms glaring at him. “It isn’t worth it, leave it on the ground where it belongs.”

It was CT-1307’s turn to glare daggers, but at the man, who was smirking when CT-1307 didn’t make a move. _This isn’t right. He’s abusive and he just hurt my brother. I can’t just stand right in front of him and walk back._ CT-1307 stared at the trainer while he dropped the floor next to his brother.

“Stop fucking moving or I swear-” the man started but choked up in shock and anger. CT-1307 challenged him by still moving, tearing his eyes away to the cadet curled on the floor.

The trainer continued to yell things at CT-1307 but he didn’t make any advances toward him. The cadet had his face screwed up in pain, eyes tightly shut, and his breathing heavy. CT-1307 gently slipped his hand under his Eighty-nine’s head and muttered under his breath, “Come on, open your eyes, kiddo.”

Eighty-nine recognized the voice of one of his brothers and shuffled closer, pushing his head onto CT-1307’ thigh. CT-1307 ran a subtle hand through the boy’s hair, still ignoring the trainer's venom-filled threats. He would bet that his other brothers were looking at each other nervously, not knowing what to do.

“T-thirteen?” the smaller child whispered to the medic trainee. CT-1307 nodded and smiled to the best of his ability. “Yeah, kid. I wasn’t going to let him hurt you more. Can you tell me where you’re hurt, Eighty-nine?”

Eighty-nine winced in pain. “M-mostly my ribs. Some in my leg.”

CT-1307 pursed his lips, still not taking his hands off of his head. “Does it hurt to breathe?”

The younger boy didn’t hesitate when he answered, “Y-yeah.”

CT-1307 pressed gingerly on eighty-nine's ribs, not liking when his brother flinched at the very light touch. CT-1307 made a soothing shushing sound when his brother whimpered while he pressed a little harder. “Shhhhh, shhhhh. He’ll be more pissed if you make noise.”

His younger brother nodded, tears threatening to spill over his eyes, in too much pain. CT-1307 lifted him into a sitting position and was able to catch the trainer’s words.

“If all of you are defective as those two your life will be a living hell with me!”

CT-1307 felt rage in his heart but stayed calm for his brother’s sake. “Are you able to walk? Or at least able to walk out the door until I can carry you?”

The boy nodded. “I think.”

CT-1307 started to help him stand up, catching him when he started to fall forward. The cadet was smaller than the medic so CT-1307 hoped that he would be able to carry him if it came to that. He may be technically and biologically seven but he hoped his training made him able to carry the other seven-year-old.

“Trooper get back in line!”

CT-1307 ignored him, whispering comforting things to his brother who was shaking in pain and fear.

“Get back in line and prove you aren’t defective!”

That didn’t work either on the young clone, he was used to all the trainer’s threats. 

“Jango and the Kaminoans will be hearing about this!”

CT-1307 didn’t falter, but he panicked a little bit. He had never met Jango before but he had heard stories from the older troopers that Jango trained from time to time that he was intense sometimes. CT-1307 prayed that if Jango was notified that the Mandalorian would have mercy on his _literal_ flesh and blood and not side with his trainer.

CT-1307 quickly got the cadet out of the training room and into the hallway. He looked down at his brother who seemed calmer now that he was out of the terrible torture room.

“You still able to walk?”

“Mhm,” Eighty-nine softly hummed, curled closer to his brother. “Thank you,” He told his brother shyly.

CT-1307 shook his head, smiling at him. “No need to thank me. I’m your older brother; I’ll always protect you. Even from nasty trainers.”

The cadet looked like he wanted to shrink away. “He said we’re defective...are we?”

CT-1307 stopped in the middle of the hallway and moved to stand in front of the other clone. His gaze firm. “We are _not_ defective. Just because he thinks we are doesn’t mean he’s right. We’re probably going to hear it a lot more even when we’re off of Kamino, but remember that you are not defective.”

The cadet searched CT-1307’s eyes before nodding. CT-1307 continued to walk him down to the medbay where the senior medics could help his brother. CT-1307 could only do so much, he hadn’t completed medical training yet and he only knew basic medical procedures, nothing that could help his brother if he had broken ribs. 

“Where are you taking me?” The young boy asked his older brother, looking up at him.

CT-1307 didn’t look down. “Medbay.”

Eighty-nine made a noise of protest and CT-1307 snorted, “What? You don’t like the medbay or something?”

CT-1307’s brother shook his head. “The senior medics can be scary.”

CT-1307 rolled his eyes playfully. Of course, the small clone wouldn’t like the older medics. “They’re only scary when you do something stupid. For example, two of the CCs decided to climb the rafters in a race. They both fell and it was safe to say the medics were royally _pissed_.” CT-1307 had gotten his information from one of his brothers in medical training that was a bit older than him.

“Were they okay?”

CT-1307 laughed a little. “Yeah, one of them had a broken arm and the other had a fractured collarbone. But Jango apparently wasn’t too happy with that.”

The younger clone giggled at their older brothers’ antics and begrudgingly let CT-1307 lead him to the medbay. CT-1307 pressed the keypad to the doors, still holding the cadet close to his side. They entered the white medbay and saw multiple clones laying in beds, but thankfully none of them looked too critically hurt.

One of the senior medics saw CT-1307 and the smaller clone from the corner of his eye. The medic motioned for one of the other medics to take over the clone that he was with at the moment. They exchanged quick words with each other before the first medic crossed the walk to get to CT-1307.

“What’s wrong with him?” He asked once he got close enough and saw the little cadet wincing in pain. He noted in the back of his mind the grey cross on CT-1307’s shoulder and dropped down to his knee in front of the younger clone.

“Our trainer flipped him over his shoulder and he landed pretty hard on his ribs. I felt around them a little and I’m guessing that his ribs are cracked.”

The medic tilted his head and pointed to one of the free beds. “Well let's find out. Come on, kid.”

Eighty-nine let the older medic lead him to a bed and the smaller clone yelped when he was lifted onto the bed by him. The two medics shared a soft smile before the senior medic pushed the cadet onto his back. Before the medic could do anything he was interrupted by one of the other slightly younger medics on the opposite side of the room.

“Helix! Get over here, I need your help with this one.”

The medic bristled at the name and rolled his eyes at the other teen. “That’s not my name and you know that Seventy-three.” The clone, ‘Helix,’ as their other brother had called him, put his hands on his hips sassily.

CT-1307 could see the other medic smirk condescendingly and he responded, “Then tell me, what _is_ your name?”

The two medics went into a stare-off, with the older of the two not responding. The younger teenager’s grin grew with every passing second because he knew that his brother wasn’t going to answer.

“That’s what I thought. So get your ass over here, _Helix_ ,” The younger medic put emphasis on his name.

Helix groaned at his brother and turned to the other two clones. “I’ll be back in a minute. Don’t move,” He ordered but then gave the hurt clone a small smile before walking away. 

While Helix was occupied with another patient, CT-1307 subconsciously looked about the room silently. The medbay on their little home on Kamino was a very obnoxiously bright room with white walls and white floors. CT-1307 could never quite understand why it was so white and bright, but he didn’t complain much out loud, only in his head. 

The room had two double doors at the front. About six medical cots were lined up in the room, three in each row, with one wide aisle going down right down the middle for carting, running, or walking room. At the front, near the front doors, on the left and right side, were two huge cabinets, which held the medical supplies that the medics need to help their patients or diagnose them. At the way end of the room, in the right corner, there sat a giant cubicle- like structure, more like a shower stall, but it was open, and in front of it on the ceiling were two holographic slim screens that would flip down to give an individual x-ray.

The medbay also had this certain smell to it. It smells like special cleaners (bleach) that wafted up from the bedding, antiseptic, a metallic tang from stainless steel in the open air, and blood. 

CT-1307 was used to the smell. The young clone, however, seemed not to be. He groaned quietly, curling onto his side.

CT-1307 looked at him. “What’s wrong?”

“I...I hate the smell.”

“Heh. What? The smell of the room?” CT-1307 asked, finding that a bit amusing.

“Y-yes.” His fellow cadet blanched heavily before swallowing. He closed his eyes and breathed deeply. “It makes me feel nauseous sometimes.”

CT-1307 turned to face him and crossed his arms over his chest. “Oh, is that why you don’t like coming to the medbay sometimes?” 

“That and the scary medics.” The clone smiled at him. CT-1307 laughed to himself, shaking his head good-heartedly.

“Anddd the scary medics.” CT-1307 quirked an eyebrow up at him. “Well, I am one of those scary medics. Did you forget?”

“You are totally irrelevant, Thirteen. You are the kindest medic I’ve ever met and may ever meet, so, congratulations.” The kid laughed.

CT-1307 snorted and looked off to the side again. “Har har, you are so funny.”

Eighty-nine pouted. “Oh come on, Thirteen, loosen up.”

“Loosening could get me and you in trouble. You are lucky I even went out there to save your ass.”

“Yeah, yeah, I am lucky to have such a GREAT medic!” The cadet yelled a bit to annoy CT-1307, snickering, turning many heads.

CT-1307 blushed starkly and glared down at his charge. “Shhhh. Right now. Shut up.”

“Make me.”

CT-1307 rolled his eyes and flustered. “I am ignoring you now.”

“Okayyyy~” The cadet looked away, then got this great idea. “I guess you don’t want to hear about when the ‘Commander’ trainees will be here again.” CT-1307 looked back over at him, now interested. The cadet smirked victoriously.

“You know when they’ll be back?” CT-1307 perked up. Yeah, his entire batch knew of his nightly escapades to go and sneak a peek at the Commander trainee’s whenever they came back to their lovely home. Usually, they go out on little mini-missions with Alpha-17 and then return a couple of days afterward. CT-1307 was always so busy, being a medic trainee and a regular cadet, he had _triple_ the amount of work to do, unlike his batchmates. But sometimes he would get lucky and would be awake just as the Commander trainees return back to Kamino from their off-world training.

It was cute to his batchmates how excited he’d get over it.

“From what I overheard three days ago, they should be back tonight.” The cadet grinned, tilting his head to the side.

CT-1307’s eyes widened. “What? Are you serious?” He sprung forward and leaned his elbow against the medical bed. The cadet flinched, then started to laugh. “You aren’t pulling my leg, are you?”

“Nope.” Eighty-nine crossed his arms over his chest.

CT-1307 squealed, “W-”

“Alright kiddos, here I come,” Helix said, coming back over to them. CT-1307 glanced over his shoulder and then sighed with disappointment.

He looked back at his batchmate and jabbed a finger at him, saying, “Later.” The cadet nodded with a smile and leaned back into the blankets just as Helix reached them.

Helix sat on the edge of the bed close to the cadet. “Alright kiddo. I’m going to press on your ribs and you tell me if it hurts, got it?” Helix gave him simple instructions and the younger clone nodded.

Helix pressed his warm hands on the little one’s ribcage. He started to move his hand around slightly, torquing his rib cage a small bit. His hands brushed the left side of the cadet’s ribcage and the boy let out a hiss then a whimper of pain. Helix lessened the pressure but kept his hands right where they were. “Did that hurt right there?”

“M-mhm.” the younger boy struggled to not shift in pain. 

Helix nodded. “On a scale of one to ten, how bad was it?”

The young clone thought for a moment before he replied shakily, “S-six.”

Helix pursed his lips before running his fingers over his brother’s chest to find the first “true’” rib and applied pressure before running his finger horizontally over the bone. Helix did that motion once before moving to the next one since the boy on the bed didn’t flinch. The second rib was completely fine as well along with the third. When Helix reached the fourth rib, the cadet almost jumped away. Helix stopped and looked up. 

Eighty-nine breathed heavily, pain evident in his body language. He felt like his body was on fire. Helix took one of his hands off of the cadet to run the pad of his thumb over his collarbone. “Shhhhh. You’re okay, just breathe kiddo.”

The cadet choked on his breath a few times before his heart rate lowered back down to a normal rhythm. Helix smiled at him. “Good boy. Try to calm your breaths if it hurts, okay?”

The kid nodded, and Helix continued. Helix moved his fingers over the same bone, feeling an odd texture underneath his finger. He ran over it again and pressed down on it and heard his brother inhale sharply. _Cracked. I highly doubt it’s the only one_ . Helix moved down to the fifth rib, feeling the same thing, and he heard a similar sound his brother made earlier. _Also cracked_.

By the time Helix was done with his examination, he had found four cracked ribs on the left side of his brother’s chest and two on the right side. Helix slid his hands away and leaned back slightly. “He has multiple cracked ribs. My guess there might be more that I just couldn’t find. The cracked ribs are on the fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh ribs on the left side and the first and second ribs on the right side.”

CT-1307 nodded, looking down at his batchmate. “You’re not going to send him back to training today, are you?”

Helix shook his head. “I would be a _demagolka_ if I let him go back to training. I’ll keep him here for a while then he will be on bed rest for a few days so his ribs can have a break from being hit in sparring.”

CT-1307 nodded, glancing down at his brother teasingly. “You’re not going to be any trouble while I’m gone, right?”

His brother glared at him, making a shooing motion with his hands. “Yeah, yeah whatever Thirteen, I’m not a baby.”

CT-1307 cocked a dark eyebrow. “You sure about that?”

“Yes,” the cadet hissed.

CT-1307 held his hands up in surrender and slowly walked backward. “Fine, I’m leaving, I’m leaving. See you later brat.” CT-1307 gave one final tease before exiting the medbay. He quickly looked at the time before he left the medbay and saw that hand-to-hand combat was over for the day, so he just headed on back to his barracks, remembering that the Commanding trainees will be back home soon. He felt oddly giddy at the thought.

As he was walking down the hallway, he saw his trainer and about three other trainers conversing in the hallway. CT-1307 felt his heart leap into his throat and swallowed it back down. Without trying to bring too much attention to himself he swiftly tried to walk past but someone with a solid grip grabbed his arm.

CT-1307 came eye-to-eye with his trainer from combat training earlier, and now that he was looking closer he could see that he had had all these trainers too. And they didn’t seem to like him very much. CT-1307’s heart was hammering as the trainer glared at him.

“If you ever disobey me like that again, you will be severely punished. Do you fucking understand me?” 

CT-1307 didn’t answer fast enough and that earned him a slap to the face for it. His head snapped to the other side, fire spreading across his cheek, and he gasped quietly. CT-1307 felt ice in his veins and then his hands started shaking. This is not the place he wanted to be.

“Answer me!”

CT-1307 stuttered, “I-I understand.”

CT-1307 was roughly pushed back into the center of the hall, staring wide-eyed at his trainers. One of the other trainers that were human took a menacing step forward. “You tell the other cadets or Fett, and we’ll punish you even more. Got it, trooper?”

CT-1307 jerkily nodded and practically sprinted away. The trainers watched as he dashed down the hall, smirks on their faces.

“So, the brat back-talks you too?” One of CT-1307’s trainers asked, the human man.

The Dathomirian man snorted, “Yeah, he’s fucking with my Chain of Command too. He reminds me of some of the CC clones; bratty as hell and disrespectful. But I can’t do anything about the CCs or Fett will have my fucking head.”

The third trainer, a Kiffar man, hummed in agreement. “We can’t touch them because they’re Jango’s brood, but...this one isn’t. And he needs to be taught a lesson sooner or later.”

* * *

CT-1307 stumbled out of the medbay with ten other medic trainees hours after finally finishing his long-ass medic training class. He hated it sometimes. Today was most dreadful, and the reason why was because they learned about how to make a makeshift bandage out of anything in their surroundings. CT-1307 just wasn’t into that type of slow, boring stuff. 

He was more into the hands-on ‘duty calls’ kind of stuff, like, stressful, dangerous, in the moment kind of things, like; CPR while in the middle of a simulated battlefield, how to do a successful surgery, how to carry your comrade across difficult terrain to safety, how to set up a makeshift medical tent, how to be fast when in a dire situation. All those things were what CT-1307 was into. Not this...this..slow crap.

CT-1307 stretched his arms above his head and yawned loudly. _Stars, I just want to go to sleep._ He stopped in the middle of the hall, realizing something. _Hold on,_ he turned around, not facing the opposite direction from the other cadets. The white lights in the hallway made his vision blur and his retina throb, but he didn’t care about that right now. He just remembered something. CT-1307 raised his hands up close to his chest and grinned wildly. _Right! The Commander trainees are back!! I gotta go now before I miss them!_

And with that, CT-1307 left a cloud of smoke behind him.

The young cadet reached the training room for the more older cadets and waited by the entrance. It opened and closed constantly, letting out groups of red-dressed brothers. They passed the young one by, not even giving a second glance. CT-1307 tensed up, hoping that he would be able to sneak inside before someone—that being the asshole trainers or the Kaminoans—caught him out here. At this moment, the young cadets were actually supposed to be asleep, but CT-1307 was breaking a couple of rules to be here, again. 

The door didn’t open back up for a while. CT-1307 took that as his chance to get inside before he wasn’t able to. He slipped inside the room once the door opened for him and he gawked at the room. The room was enormous!! Wide-open spaces, enough for the older cadets to space themselves out across the huge blue mats that covered a good majority of the flooring space. There were metal benches left alongside the two blue mats, both serving their purpose to a bunch of older brothers resting or drinking water.

On the two blue mats, at least maybe six brothers took up space, sparring back and forth with another cadet. They grunted powerfully. Sweat covered their glistening foreheads. They wore some type of armor that CT-1307 had never seen before, fancier than the armor they wore for final testing days. And they fought with such veracity. Their fighting styles were mindblowing; all brief, some open, others rugged and tight, and they fought with great valor. 

_Wowwww!_ CT-1307 stared in awe. _They. are. So. COOL!!_

“Heh heh, yeah yeah,” CT-1307 heard a brother say beside him. He immediately freaked out and tripped over fucking nothing to hide behind a bunch of metal crates by the door. CT-1307 was still able to see over the crates though, so this was totally fine. No problem at all. 

There were two clones in particular who were tussling on the closest blue mat to CT-1307. They both had standard regulation haircuts. Brown hair. Twin golden eyes, which burned fiercely as they glared at one another. One of them outright growled at the other, revealing his canines, and then he dashed forward with such speed, it was amazing. Then he tackled the other one to the mat, hard. No mercy.

CT-1307’s mouth opened in shock, eyes shimmering cutely. _Ahhhh!! Woah! How did he do that?_ He wondered.

“Ack!” The one that got taken down grunted, back on the mat, facing up toward the ceiling. “Ughh!” He groaned in pain when the victor on top of him tugged at his arm, pulling it behind his back. 

CT-1307 gasped.

“Stop! Thirty-six, get off!” The cadet begged, groaning again when the other only grinned wolfishly down at him.

“Haha! Nope.” The bigger cadet moved to straddle the other down on the mat, purposefully not letting him get up, finding some kind of joy in this act.

The struggling one tried again, “Get oMph-Mmm!” only to get a big sweaty, nasty hand placed over his mouth.

“Ha!” Someone laughed loudly on the other side of the stack of crates. 

“Thirty-six has no sense of mercy, does he?” Another asked.

A third person laughed, “Nope!” CT-1307 stayed absolutely still and eavesdropped on their conversation.

“You know what’s hilarious is that when Thirty-six fights, he fights kriffing dirty.” The first brother commented.

The second person added, “Yeah! The _shabuir_ will quite literally bite you, actually, like a _karking_ wolf or some shit.” CT-1307’s eyes widened some. _Woahhh, what?_ “Umm, a couple of days ago he threatened to kick my knees out of their sockets, so I avoided him for the rest of the evening. It was funny though afterward.”

“Funny?!” One of them exclaimed. “Ha! If someone threatened to take out my knees, I would say, ‘not if I do it to ya first bitch!’” That caused two of the three to start laughing explosively.

“Hey, cut it out, will ya?” This one sounded a bit more mature than the other two.

“Oooooh, Stone is maaad~”

“Shut up, Seventy-seven,” Stone responded.

The one that obviously got defeated by the wolfish one tapped his hand on the mat two times, indicating he was done and beaten. The three cadets by the crates laughed at that.

“Anddd you lost again Ten-ten!” The loudest of them all hooted, pointing at the defeated cadet.

“More like tin-tin, Thorn,” Seventy-seven commented smugly, glancing at Thorn. 

Stone shook his head from side to side before he added, “Tin-can.” That got them all to burst out laughing, making ten-ten blush hard. CT-1307 pressed a hand over his mouth to keep from laughing. _They are so funny, I can’t!_ CT-1307 peaked over the crate just so he could see a bit better. 

“ _Nutennir te haran laam_!” Ten-ten cursed at them, telling them to shut the hell up in Mando’a. 

Seventy-seven snickered, waving to Thirty-six. “Good job beating his ass again!”

Thirty-six winked at Seventy-seven and grinned at him. He blushed pink at the wink. Thorn turned to tease his batchmate. 

"Ten-ten, why do you suck balls?" Thorn yelled, grabbing him around the neck, proceeding to give him a big noogie. 

"Oh shut it you, cocksucker!" Ten-ten yanked himself out of the hold around his neck and shoved at Thorn. 

CT-1307 blushed at the use of words. _Woah, that's vulgar._

"Psh, I can do it better than you so," Thorn retorts. 

Everyone around them said, 'Oooooh~' and Ten-ten grabbed Thorn by the front of his shirt and growled at him, "Say that again and I'll make you wish you hadn't." 

CT-1307's ears turned red. _They are probably just playing around. Heh heh. I can't see them over this damn crate._

"Then make me Ten-ten. I'd love to see you try." Thorn whispered back so softly that the others couldn't hear. 

"Alright men, that's enough for today! Good work!" Someone yelled from the front of the back of the room. All heads turned to look at…Jango Fett. 

CT-1307 squealed internally, _Ohmygoshohmygosdohmygoshohmygosdgosh!!_

"Alright, well, you heard him, ladies. Let's get going to the shower room." Thirty-six turned around and was heading straight toward CT-1307. Thirty-six glanced over his shoulder when someone yelled something to tease him, giving CT-1307 a split second to dash across the floor until he reached another stack of crates. 

Now he had a good view of everything going on. Unbeknownst to him, the squad of four cadets next to the wall saw him run to hide. 

Stone spoke up in amusement before they reached the door, "Hey, Thirty-six! You got a shadow." Stone pointed over toward the stack of crates and to the young cadets hiding behind it. 

CT-1307 blinked. Everyone looked over at the crates and, there indeed peeling out was a little shadow. 

Ten-ten glanced at the young one and folded his arms over his chest. "Hey, kid! Whatcha doing out here so late?"

CT-1307 scrambled further behind the crates and cursed lightly. _Oh no, I'm in for it now._

Thorn smacked Ten-ten on the back of his head scoldingly. Ten-ten glares knives back at him. 

Thirty-six passed Kote and chuckled, smiling softly at the sight of their younger brother there watching him. Thirty-six lowered himself to one knee. "Hey, come out kid. It's alright."

CT-1307 peaked out slightly and shook his head, totally hesitant about coming out. 

"It's alright. None of us are mad. We won't tell the long-necks either," Thirty-six reassured him. 

CT-1307 came out shyly and stood there a bit out from the stack of crates. Everyone was staring at him. _This is not what I signed up for. They…they might tell on me. How can I trust them?_ CT-1307 golden eyes swept over each and everyone one of them. _Then again, why would they snitch on me? They are my older brothers. They wouldn't want to cause me any harm. Right?_ CT-1307 fidgeted in place, thinking it over internally before finally deciding to approach his older brother. So, he walked toward Thirty-six and the others.

More of the older cadets stopped walking toward the shower room door to look at their young brother coming up to their snappy, wolfish brother. 

CT-1307 looked down at his feet. "I'm sorry, sir. Please don't tell anyone," He apologized.

Thirty-six smiled. "Don't worry about it kid. I'm not gonna tell on ya." Thirty-six stood up and looked over behind himself to the others, gesturing to them. "What's your designation kid?" 

"CT-1307, sir," CT-1307 responded.

"You like watching us, huh?" Thirty-six asked him. 

CT-1307 couldn't help but be excited about it. "Yeah! You guys are like...so cool!"

All the troopers that stopped to listen started to chuckle at that because it's _kriffing_ adorable.

"Yeah, it's cool," Kote added, looking at his younger brother. 

CT-7567 noticed something on the side of CT-1307's shoulder and pointed it out, "Oh, he's a medic-in-training." He smiled at CT-1307.

Thirty-six looked down as well and sure enough, there was a grey cross on CT-1307's shoulder pad. 

CT-1307 nodded and said, "Yeah I am. But I wish I could be like you." 

Thirty-six chuckled to himself and stood up, standing tall and proud over CT-1307. "Kid, I want you to remember something. Being a Commander doesn't mean that you are better than everyone else. Each and every one of us plays a huge part in what's to come. The CT troopers play a part in it. The CC troopers play a part in it. Medics especially play a big part in it too."

"Yeah, but you guys are always so brave! I watched you today and you guys were awesome! Better than I could ever hope to fight another person in hand-to-hand. I'm just not good at it like you are." CT-1307's eyes drooped. "What if I ain't cut out for this?"

Thirty-six placed a comforting hand on CT-1307’s shoulder, encouraging him to look up at him. "Medics can be fearless too. You don't have to be a Commander to do that. Medics are an important factor because your job is to save us and the rest of our brothers. When a domino falls you pick them back up. So you are just as important, kid. Alright?" 

CT-1307's golden eyes shimmer with hope. He nods confidently, given the extra confidence he needed. 

Jango was walking toward the elevator when he glanced over his shoulder at the commotion behind him. A giant group of his men had formed. Some of his men haven't left the room yet. Jango walked over to said group and crossed his arms over his chest. 

"What's going on here?" He asked firmly. All of the older troopers snapped to attention, but CT-1307 subtly hid behind Thirty-six when hearing the older man acknowledge them. 

"Sir!" Thirty-six saluted to Fett and then gestured to CT-1307. "This is CT-1307, sir. He's been shadowing us for the past hour," Thirty-six introduced CT-1307 with a smirk. 

CT-1307 snapped to attention on instinct when Jango looked at him. Jango was observing him with a hard stare. CT-1307 stood in tense silence before Jango’s cold stare melted into a soft smile. “What did you think of the Commander program, cool huh?”

CT-1307 let a small grin spread across his face. “It’s fascinating, sir.”

Thorn snorted quietly, “Fascinating is a strong word.”

Kote nudged him in the abdomen. “Speak for yourself.”

Jango nodded and gave Thorn a look. “Give yourself credit, Thorn.”

CT-1307 giggled quietly, enjoying the interesting variety of personalities of his older brothers. He was surprised Jango was being….nice too. He had expected the man to be stern the whole time.

He saw Jango’s eyes fall on his shoulder and a soft smile graced his lips. “So, you’re a medic trainee. How is that going so far?”

CT-1307 shrugged. “They pack so much into one session, it’s crazy. But they teach us all the less interesting and more boring math crap or basic things first. I want to do the hands-on, tense stuff.” The Commander trainees laughed at that. 

Jango chuckled, “Don’t rush things. Stay in the moment and don’t try to grow up too fast.” Jango took another look at the cadet and smirked. “Though I’m guessing you’re as stubborn as your older brothers and won’t take the advice I just said.”

CT-1307 smirked, reading the calm, loose tone of the room, and replied snarkily, “You’re correct, sir.”

The older clones and Jango chuckled. Jango patted CT-1307’s shoulder lightly then turned to his other boys. “I like this one.”

CT-1307 felt an odd, warm feeling flood his chest, he could describe it but it was...different. A good kind of different. Thirty-six looked down at him again and cocked an eyebrow. “Shouldn’t you be asleep right now?”

CT-1307 froze and looked at thirty-six with his best puppy eyes. “No?”

Thirty-six barked a laugh, “Ha! Yeah right.”

CT-1307 pouted, knowing that he was about to be sent off to bed.

“Thirty-six is right, it’s late for _all_ of you.” Jango gave his boys stern stares.

Thirty-six nudged CT-1307’s shoulder. “Go to bed kid. We would rather say goodbye than have you be punished by the _shabuirs_ later.”

CT-1307 nodded. “Fair point.” He mumbled the next part under his breath, “I already pissed them off earlier.”

Thirty-six and the others gazed down at the younger clone. “What was that?”

“Nothing,” CT-1307 recovered quickly, hoping the others would leave it alone but he could feel Jango’s stare on the back of his head.

Thirty-six curled his hand into a fist and offered it to CT-1307. CT-1307 returned it with a grin and then Kote playfully pushed him towards the door. “Get some sleep _vod’ika_.”

CT-1307 lazily waved a hand behind himself as he left the room, too tired and giddy to wave goodbye properly. CT-1307 heard footsteps coming towards him and he quickly ducked into an empty training room on the other side. CT-1307 waited until the footsteps receded down the hall. He had to duck behind a few walls on the way back to his batch, but he eventually made it to the sleeping pods without being seen. CT-1307 tiptoed into the room, not wanting to wake any of his brothers. He made it to his and his batchmates’ sections of sleeping pods and slowly climbed up the ladder, being as quiet as possible.

Sadly, his brothers were waiting for them. Simultaneously, they opened their pods to stare condescendingly at CT-1307.

“Busted,” CT-1307’s oldest batchmate spoke first, the only one of them with a name so far.

CT-1307 rolled his eyes. “Zip it, Fido. You’ve snuck out before, so you don’t get to reprimand me _ori’vod._ ”

Fido snickered, “I’m your older brother, Thirteen. I can reprimand you all I want.”

Their youngest batchmate, Eighty-nine, spoke next, not moving from his position laying on his side. “How was it? You’re later than normal.”

CT-1307 smiled at his youngest brother, glad he was out of the medbay, but then blushed lightly. “Yeah, well…”

Fido’s smirk grew. “Spill little brother.”

“I kinda….got caught by the CCs.”

They were silent before Fifty-five started cackling, “That is hilarious!”

CT-1307 glared at him, and Thirty-two smacked Fifty-five over the head. “Be nice. Tell us Thirteen, please?”

CT-1307 looked to his feet. “I tried to switch hiding spots but I got caught by one of the CCs, ‘Stone,’ I think his name is. I tried to hide even more but one of the CCs I was watching spar told me I could come out. They were actually...nice. They talked to me, but then _Jango_ came over-” A series of gasps broke his words off.

“ _Jango!?_ ”

“Did you get in trouble?”

“Did the others hide you?”

“How did you talk your way out of this one?”

CT-1307 smiled and chuckled, “I didn’t get punished. Jango was kind. He actually had a conversation with me. He’s not as scary as he sounds.”

Eighty-nine looked at him with big eyes. “Wait, they were all nice? They always seem so intimidating.”

CT-1307 shook his head, remembering the strong language he had heard from the older clones but also the nice tone they had with him. “No, they were nice. But their word choice...heh heh, well, that is another story.”

Fido rolled his eyes playfully, smiling at his batchmates. “Well, I’m glad you didn’t get your ass beat for being out of bed. Now go to sleep. You have medic training tomorrow again.”

CT-1307 grinned at him and opened his pod. “Goodnight.”

“Goodnight Thirteen.” They all bid goodnight before sliding back into their pods.

* * *

  
  


_About three months later…_

CT-1307 grunted when a fist hit him in the gut. He recovered quickly though and hopped back a couple of steps, avoiding getting smacked in the chin.

“Heh, come on Thirteen, you can do better than that.” Fifty-five smirked, fists raised. The newly fifteen-year-old (technically seven and a half years old) glared at his younger brother. CT-1307 dashed forward and dodged a leg swing. Then he came back around and threw a punch at his batchmate. Fifty-five blocked the attack before it smacked him straight in the jaw and then he threw a punch back.

“Take this!” Fifty-five yelled.

CT-1307 spun out of the way and aimed for his brother’s side, but he was tricked easily. Fifty-five grabbed his right arm that he was going to hit him with and then he yanked upon it, tossing CT-1307 behind him. CT-1307 flew forward and hit the mat hard. He rolled across the mat and was about to get up but he found a forearm pressed against his chest. 

CT-1307 stared up at his brother and chuckled, “Nice. You’re getting better.”

“Me? Ha! I am more worried about you, dumbass.” Fifty-five laughed, giving him a helping hand. CT-1307 took his hand and was lifted off the floor.

“You know I let you beat me right.” CT-1307 rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. Fifty-five laughed harder and backed away.

 _“Sureee, suree,_ ” He responded. The double doors at the front of the room opened to reveal the Commander trainees and Jango. CT-1307 and his batchmates were too busy sparring to really take their eyes off the prize and look at their older brothers. They continued what they were doing. 

Jango looked over the young clones and smiled to himself, crossing his beefy arms over his chest.

“Heh. It seems this room is in use right now, boys. Wanna come back later?” Jango asked, looking over his shoulder to his cadets.

Kote chuckled to himself, “Nah. We can wait, besides, they seem to be the only ones here.”

“Hey, is that Thirteen?” CT-7567 asked, pointing their younger brother out, picking him out amongst the crowd. Everyone looked over or tried to peek over taller brothers’ shoulders to look and sure enough, there was CT-1307 smiling at his batchmate.

“Ah, yes. Let’s stay.” Jango said and walked over to the metal bench just behind CT-1307’ batchmate. The Commander trainees follow their mentor and sit on either the bench, stand around it, or sit on the floor in front of it. Thirty-six and Kote sit on the bench on either side of Jango.

“Let’s see how the kid does.” Thirty-six mumbled, looking straight ahead.

CT-1307 and Fifty-five started to circle one another, eyes on their opponent. CT-1307 circled to his right, left foot over the other, and immediately caught sight of all the Commander trainees and Jango _watching_ them. CT-1307 felt his heart stop. _Oh my god. No way. Are they-_

 _“_ Keep your eyes on me and not them, Thirteen.” Fifty-five reminded him, finding it amusing that CT-1307 was distracted.

“Sorry, sorry.” CT-1307 looked back toward Fifty-five and exhaled gently. He put one foot in front of the other and pushed off with his left heel. Fifty-five did the same and they were off. CT-1307 watched every move that Fifty-five tried to pull, from his loose elbow jabs to his dangerous leg swings. CT-1307 made sure his left arm was out in front of him to guard while his right arm remained tucked to his face, ready to be thrust out and take a hit.

Fifty-five tried to punch CT-1307 in the face, but CT-1307 blocked it easily.

“Huh, nice form," Kote commented and a few others nodded in agreement. Both Thirty-six and Jango nodded at that.

Fifty-five smirked before easily knocking CT-1307 down by quickly punching him in the gut, efficiently knocking the wind out of him. Then he moves so fast behind CT-1307 that he doesn't see it happening before it already does, and now he's on the floor flat on his back. 

"Damn," CT-1307 grunted in pain, panting hard after that gut punch. 

Fifty-five snickered. "Awwww, I thought you were a good fighter Thirteen. Apparently, you aren't." He teased his older brother, circling him patiently. 

CT-1307 just smirked at him and rolled his eyes, responding, "Don't give yourself too much credit. I was trying to not embarrass you in front of them." Now it was Fifty-five's turn to roll his eyes.

"Yeah sure. I think you’re just afraid to admit that I’m better than you.” 

CT-1307 glared at him and quickly got to his feet before he got pinned on the mat by his brother and snapped back, "See now you asked for it, chump." CT-1307, without a second thought, dashed forward, one foot after the other, and spun around, one first tucked to his side. 

Fifty-five threw up his left forearm and blocked the attack with ease. CT-1307 grunts, pushing against him. "Shit, is that all you got?" Fifty-five rhetorically asked. 

"Nah," CT-1307 answered. 

"That was a rhetorical question, but okay. I guess we answer those now." Fifty-five chuckled, getting a laugh out of Arks and a few of their elder brothers behind them. 

Jango squinted, watching intently. CT-1307 flicked his eyes to the left and noticed that Fifty-five's right was open. 

"You talk too much." That was all the warning that Fifty-five was going to get before CT-1307 wrapped his right hand around his wrists and squeezed ridiculously hard. Then he yanked it down. 

Fifty-five went with a strangled yelp, looking straight ahead. CT-1307 moved behind Fifty-five, yanking that arm with him, causing Fifty-five to wrench his head back to avoid getting his arm pulled out of its socket, and he grunted in pain.

Fifty-five yelled, "Hey hey! Easy on the-" But he didn't get much out before CT-1307 raised his right foot and stomped it down on his brother's back, forcing him to kiss and smell the sweaty, stinky-ass mats. 

"Gah!" Fifty-five yelled, panting hard, trying to look up, but CT-1307 twisted his wrist a bit and it made him nervous. 

"You are aware of the fact that I know every way to fix a broken body, and I know _how_ to break a body, right?" CT-1307 asked rhetorically. 

The Commander trainee's eyes widened in shock, never hearing that quote before. Jango leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest, still watching. 

Fifty-five slumped into the mat and relaxed his muscles. _Yeah, there's no way I am getting myself out of this one without breaking or dislocating my own goddamn arm,_ he thought. 

"Okay, okay, yeah sure." He answered, hearing his older brother snicker afterward. 

"Heh heh. That was a rhetorical question, _vod._ "

Fifty-five blushed at that. _Dammit. I fell right into that kriffing one._ "Okay, Thirteen, I get it. You won. You won you won you won. Let go!"

CT-1307 let go of his arm and backed away. Fifty-five was left in an odd position, but he recovered and sat up, trembling. 

"Damn that hurt." He mumbled to himself. 

CT-1307 reached out to offer a helping hand and smiled. "Well, I am always learning, so, there's that."

Fifty-five eyed him silently. 

"Hm, need a hand?" CT-1307 tilted his head to the side. Fifty-five glanced away and chuckled softly. He looked back up to CT-1307 and said, "Always." Eyes sparkling. 

CT-1307 lifted Fifty-five to his own two feet and smacked him on the shoulder. "Is that shoulder okay? I didn't pull it that hard, did I?" 

Fifty-five got a sweaty towel thrown at his face. He gagged and pulled it off. 

"Oi! You threw that!" He demanded, twisting around to look at Thirty-two, his second youngest brother. 

"Hahahhaha!" Eighty-nine, their youngest, burst out laughing. 

Fido rolled his eyes at his youngest brother's antics and looked directly at CT-1307. "Yeah, you kind of did Thirteen." Thirteen snickered to himself, briefly glancing to his left to notice that the Commander trainees were starting to spread themselves out thinly, moving onto the mats to start their advanced stuff. 

"Ha! Couldn't be me, little bitch," Thirty-two, the fourth of their batch, laughed, grabbing Fifty-five around the neck. 

Fifty-five grunted, "Ugh! Who you callin' 'little,' jerk?"

"Uhhh, I did." Thirty-two pointed at himself, smirking mischievously. 

"Shut the fuck up," Fifty-five growled. 

"Make me!" Thirty-two gave him a stinging noogie. 

CT-1307 and Fido rolled their eyes at their younger brothers messing around. The sound of someone clearing their throat to get their attention turned them all in the direction that sound came from. Jango stood right behind the younger clones. 

"You did excellent with your form and your hand-to-hand combat. Your trainer taught you well, huh?" Jango smiled at Fifty-five and CT-1307. 

Fifty-five shrugged, looking off to the side sheepishly. "Welllll, I wouldn't say our trainer's the besttt." That earned him an immediate smack on the back of his head by Fido. 

"Fifty-five," Fido hissed at him.

"Heh. That's quite alright." Jango chuckled at their comment. "However, I do have some tips to give and, of course, criticism."

Out of all the clones Fifty-five was the one to groan in clear annoyance. Jango ignored that and continued, "you," Jango looked at CT-1307. "You need to make sure your stance remains wide when you are fighting an opponent head-on. Don't lock your knees." He looked at Fifty-five. "You did a lot of that especially. Make sure to fix that, okay?" 

Fifty-five nodded, looking at the ground. 

"But other than that, you did very well. I am proud of all of you," Jango concluded. "Fix what I pointed out, okay?"

"Yessir!" They all nodded at him. Fifty-five was pouting, annoyed at the fact that he was criticized for what he did, which he thought was right. Jango noticed, so did the others. Fido sighed internally and tried not to reprimand Fifty-five _in front_ of Jango, their donor, for his blatant disrespect. 

Jango didn't say anything mean though. Instead, he walked up to Fifty-five, which almost made him flinch. Like the many times’ Fifty-five had gotten smacked for his mouth, he would be a little bit on edge, readying himself to get it from anyone. Jango's eyes saddened a little, but he hid it well. 

He placed his hand on Fifty-five's shoulder and offered a comforting smile that calmed his nerves. "What's your name?"

"...Fifty-five sir."

Jango nodded. "Fifty-five, I want you to remember something for me." Fifty-five looked up at him and held the gaze. "There is always room for improvement, no matter who you are or how great you'll become. You, him," Jango gestured to CT-1307, "and all of your brother's have room for improvement." Jango glanced over his shoulder and jabbed a thumb at the Commander trainees. "Even these junkies need improvement. They aren't perfect either. So don't let them tell ya that, because they ain't." Jango looked Fifty-five in the eyes and said, "Got it?"

Fifty-five felt this warmth blossom in his chest and he smiled. "Yessir," He responded with a smile on his face. 

Jango nodded with a smile of his own. "Good."

The cadets and Jango heard a loud bang, oddly similar to something be slammed against the wall. Jango whipped around and the younger clones leaned on either side of Jango to see what the commotion was.

Thirty-six had a forearm up against Kote’s neck who’s back was pressed against the wall. It seemed like Thirty-six had thrown Kote against the wall and put an arm up to his throat to keep him where he was. They were both smirking at each other, challenging one another. Kote tried to kick his brother’s legs out but he was in too awkward of a position.

“I swear, if you bite me I will _hurt_ you,” Kote warned, growling low in his throat.

Thirty-six grinned wolfishly. “Make me, Kot’ika.”

Kote was about to open his mouth to say something about the term of endearment but Jango interrupted.

“Wolffe! If you want to attack your brother, be more productive, and do it while sparring. Because the wall isn't a sparring mat.”

“But this is fun, Jango,” ‘Wolffe’ practically whined to his trainer. Jango shook his head and gave a firm point to an empty spot on the floor.

Wolffe let Kote go and his younger brother smacked him on the head. Wolffe growled at him but Kote just laughed. His eyes fell on the CT-1307 and he remembered seeing him while he was sparring with his batchmates. It was about a month ago, Kote and his batchmates were on their way to the ‘death hole,’ a particularly difficult training room that had one hole in the center, and all the troopers were put down in it and were ordered to try and climb their way out and escape, like ants, and Kote and Wolffe spotted CT-1307 sparring away with a brother that had more meat on his bones, and CT-1307 was struggling to fight with someone who was a bit bigger than he. Just minutes ago it seemed he had gotten the hang of it, fighting one of his younger batchmates. 

“ _The kid has gotten better,_ ” Kote told Wolffe in fluent Mando’a, gesturing to CT-1307. The cadets looked confused, not understanding the native words leaving their older brothers’ mouths.

 _“Yeah, he has,”_ Wolffe agreed and saw the puzzled faces on the cadets. _“ You know, they’re pretty cute when they’re confused. They have these puppy eyes that could easily be used as a weapon.”_

Kote snorted, “ _If only puppy eyes worked on Jango, but he’s too much of a hard ass-”_

Jango glared at them, having obviously understood what they were saying, and snapped at them, “Kote! _Do as you’re told!_ ”

“Yes sir.”

As Kote and Wolffe crossed the floor, Wolffe paused and stood next to CT-1307. He ruffled his hair and CT-1307 playfully smacked his hands away.

“So, Wolffe, huh?” Arks asked about his name.

Wolffe smirked. “It was the others. I didn’t pick it. They said I practically acted like a wolf so it might as well be my namesake.”

CT-1307 and nodded. “I like it, as long as you don’t bite me. Then I’ll say I hate it.”

Wolffe barked a laugh and he became aware of the feeling that someone was watching him. “I gotta go, kid, before Jango beats my ass.” They gave brief goodbyes. 

CT-1307 turned back to his batchmates and Jango. Fido cocked his head to the side. “Sir, what was the language they were speaking?”

Jango smiled at his curiosity. “It’s called Mando’a; it’s the native language of Mandalore. They wanted me to teach it to them, so I did. And now I am kind of regretting teaching them. But that means I can yell at them in Mando’a and the other trainers don’t know what the hell I’m saying-”

“Cadets! We are done here! Now get out of my sight!” CT-1307 turned to see their trainer only about ten feet away. Today they had the Dathomirian since they were doing hand-to-hand combat at that time, but he had disappeared an hour ago and they thought he ditched them. Apparently not. They all had jumped at the snap in his voice. Eighty-nine had reflexively jumped backward, turning into Thirteen’s chest. He hadn’t forgotten about when his trainer made him spar and broke almost half of his ribs. And he had been even meaner ever since.

The trainer glared at the weak reflex and took a step closer but CT-1307 took a step back, tightening his hold on his little brother. The room went quiet. The Commander trainees paused their warming-up and stretching to look over, feeling protectiveness bloom in their chests when they saw how much the youngest cadet of the group was shaking.

CT-1307 started to slowly walk with his brother in his arms, staring at the trainer the whole time. But he pulled his gaze away for one second. A big mistake. CT-1307 felt someone hit him on the back of his head, hard. He instinctively swung a leg out and caught the person in their chest. He looked up and saw that it was his trainer that he had hit. CT-1307 froze, feeling his heart drop to his stomach. _Oh no, fuck. I’m going to get it now_. He tried to speak, but his throat was tight. He just gaped like a drowning fish.

The trainer’s stare was cold, making the Dathomirian seem even more vicious. “You little brat.” The trainer quickly twisted CT-1307’s arm behind his back, making him drop to one knee with a whimper. 

“Grovel an apology to me or you stay like this,” The trainer ordered and hiked the teenager’s shoulder up, even more, making him yelp. He felt tears prick his eyes.

Kote, Thorn, and Wolffe all took steps toward the teenager to stop what was happening but Jango quickly shook his head, giving a firm look to stay put. Thorn and Kote stayed back reluctantly but Wolffe partially ignored his trainer. Jango grabbed his shoulder and whipped him around so they could make eye-contact.

Wolffe tried to shake Jango off but he couldn’t. “What are you doing?” Wolffe hissed at him.

Jango replied quickly and quietly in Mando’a, “ _Saving you. I know you, Wolffe. You will severely hurt the asshole and the Kaminoans will decommission you.”_

Wolffe looked incredulously at him. “Are you kidding-”

Jango gripped the teenager’s chin roughly, causing him to shut up. “ _I am not going to lose any of you like this. Now listen to my command and stay back.”_

Wolffe was about to disobey his fath….trainer’s order immediately because, _fuck this, seriously,_ but CT-7567 walked up and tugged on Wolffe’s hand. Wolffe went with his younger brother reluctantly.

“Say it or I break your shoulder!” The Dathomirian man shouted at CT-1307. CT-1307 kicked out his trainer’s knee, making the man crumble to the floor. CT-1307 scrambled away, completely terrified of what his trainer was going to do to him.

Jango swiftly and calmly pulled the teenager behind him to shield him from the other man’s fury. 

“Fett, get out of my way or I will fuck you up.”

“And I’ll tell my boys to get the Kaminoans and have them pin you down while we wait for them. Don’t test me, Trent.”

CT-1307 and his batchmates looked at Jango in shock, having never known their trainer’s name.

“Boys, go,” Jango ordered CT-1307 and the younger cadets, pushing CT-1307 towards his brothers. The cadets quickly fled the room, leaving Trent alone in a room with pissed off, dangerous teenagers, and a ticked-off bounty hunter.

Trent glared at the other bounty hunter before smirking. “You can threaten me all you want with your toys.” Trent gestured to the other clones behind him. “You can protect them….but you can’t protect all of them. Especially the one you just saved from me that isn’t one of your chargers. So thank you for that….information.”

Jango lifted his chin an inch up, not backing down, but he didn’t like the tone of Trent’s voice. It sounded….off; it was not a tone of voice you would be using when talking about a child. “Don’t doubt the lengths I’ll go to protect them.” 

And with that, Jango turned his back to Trent, addressing his men to continue what they were doing. With a crooked grin, Trent walked out of the room. While Jango hadn’t shown much emotion in his face, Trent knew he had hit a nerve. And he was curious to test Jango’s last statement.

* * *

  
  


CT-1307 and nine other medic trainees gather around a raised white table. On the table there was a holographic patient lying on it, light-blue eyes closed. CT-1307 looked up at their teacher, one of the nicer Kaminoans, seeing her about to start their lesson by explaining in detail.

“Cadets, today you will be performing a torn ligament repair located in the ankle. I will explain to you what a lateral ankle ligament is, then you will watch me perform the repair. Afterward, it will be your turn to try it without my assistance. Understand?” All the medic trainees nodded.

“Good. Let us begin.” The Kaminoan tilted her chin down, slowly blinking. First off, she explained that a trooper may only need a lateral ankle ligament reconstruction if the outside of their ankle has loosened or stretched. This would lead to a condition called chronic ankle instability. This meant that it caused chronic pain, repeated ankle sprains, and an ankle that often gives way when a trooper walked or performed an activity. This would not be very good for a trooper fighting on the battlefield, so surgery would have to be done to fix it and get them back on the field as fast as possible.

The Kaminoan medic explained every surgery risk that would possibly come with a lateral ankle ligament surgery, such as; excess bleeding, nerve damage, infection—would be very common, so they needed to be ready for that part—stiffness in the ankle joint(s), blood clots, complications from anesthesia—also would be very common—and no improvement in the ankles stability. 

After explaining all of that, the Kaminoan moved to work. She worked with precision. 

The Kaminoan raised her big white hand and gestured to the hologram. “You can give the patient either general anesthesia or regional anesthesia. General anesthesia will make your patient sleep, while regional will just numb the involved leg.” She lowered her hand and pretended to give the patient anesthesia. “In different scenarios, you’ll have to choose what will work best. Imagine you are in a tight situation on a battlefield, which one would you choose?”

“Regional,” Percy answered instantly.

The Kaminoan tilted her head to the side and prompted, “And why is that?”

“Because it’ll be quicker and you’ll be able to carry the trooper back to safety or behind cover. You wouldn’t want them to go to sleep in the middle of battle.”

“Correct. You should only use general anesthesia if you are in the medbay on your respective star destroyer.” The Kaminoan smiled and looked back down at the patient. “For this, however, we are in the medbay of your ship.”

The clones nodded at that. Next, the Kaminoan cleaned the affected area and moved to make a clean cut through the skin and muscle of the ankle. CT-1307 watched silently, intrigued. The Kaminoan placed small instruments and a camera through the incision to perform the surgery. It took time, it took effort, and it also took lots of focus, but she removed the ATFL and the CFL ankle ligaments from where they were attached to the fibula and made the ligaments shorter outside the body, then she reattached the ligaments back into the fibula by using small holes that she drilled into the holographic bone.

Finally, the Kaminoan placed layers of holographic skin and muscle back around the ankle and surgically closed the wound. She looked up once she finished. Her white eyes swept across each medic trainee.

“That is how you perform the surgery. Now, who would like to try this on their own before training ends?” The Kaminoan asked.

CT-1307 didn’t hesitate when stepping up to where their teacher was standing. She stepped aside to let him stand in her place. “Good luck, CT-1307.”

The teenager observed the challenge in front of him, flashing through everything the teacher did just moments ago. He waited for his teacher to reset the hologram before he started the first step. He quickly but efficiently cleaned the area where the incision was going to be made. CT-1307 grabbed a scalpel and took half a second to breathe before he pressed the tip of the scalpel into the ankle of the hologram. He was slightly impressed that when he pulled the scalpel down the face of the ankle it felt like actual flesh tearing, but he quickly refocused. He dropped the scalpel back on the tray and grabbed the camera next. It took him a minute to get the angle right but he eventually found it. 

The teenager thought for a moment before going to remove the ATFL ligament. He got that ligament out with no trouble but the trouble started when he went to remove the CFL ligament. When he had cut the ligament, blood started gushing out. Alarms started to go off, signaling a problem arising. 

CT-1307 panicked, but then his teacher spoke up, “Focus and fix the problem.”

CT-1307 knew he didn’t have time to worry and panic so he did the first thing that came to mind that could help with extra blood flow during surgery. He fumbled for a suture and his hands trembled with adrenaline. He forced his hands to stop shaking. Then he worked quickly to stop the blood flow. He still heard alarms blaring in the background, but once he waited a few seconds after he finished, the ‘person’s’ vitals steadied. 

CT-1307 didn’t want to risk doing that again so he made quick but very careful work of completing the original assignment. He got both ligaments out and shortened the ligaments and then went to put them back on the ankle. He didn’t struggle this time or trigger the alarms again so he took that as a win. He reattached the two shortened ligaments and stitched up the skin before taking a step back. He looked down at his hands and he expected to see blood but they were clean. 

The young cadet let out a shaky breath and looked to the teacher. She was smiling kindly at him and praised him, “Very good work CT-1307. You did well by staying calm, very well done.”

CT-1307 smiled and nodded, then he walked back to his brothers, letting the adrenaline and past anxiety drift away. Soon everyone had done the procedure and it was time for them to leave.

“You are all dismissed. Get some rest,” Their teacher dismissed them. “Your next training session is in three days. Don’t forget.”

CT-1307 and his brothers sighed in relief and quickly left the room, ready to go to bed. CT-1307 was the last one out of the room, super tired. As he walked down the halls he noticed how he was the only one in the hall. He guessed his brothers made their way to their pods way faster than him. He was suddenly aware that the hallways were a little darker than usual and he didn’t exactly like it because of the dead silence. It was putting him on edge.

CT-1307’s eyes flicked left and right nervously. The golden iris in his eyes looked much darker in the dimmed lit hallway. The soft sound of his footsteps echoed behind him. CT-1307 passed a giant window that showed one of the bigger training rooms, a parkour simulation room with expansive space that gave a more realistic simulation of what a battlefield would look like for a team of three to five. He wouldn’t get to go in this room until his graduation day, that was what he heard from his older brothers.

Just the thought of graduating from Kamino and going out into the real world, out beyond the stars they always speak of, would be a dream come true. 

CT-1307 smiled to himself and continued walking. Up ahead the hallway split into two different branching hallways. One went to the left, which led to many medbays, experimental rooms, supplies closets, and then an elevator at the end of it. To the right, it led to a few meeting rooms, a few examination rooms, and then another elevator that went up to the top level of the Kaminoan station where the head Kaminoan, Prime Minister Lama Su, resided mostly, along with the Togruta Jedi Master that would visit the station from time to time.

The sound of footsteps at the end of the hall echoed, causing him to almost stop moving. One of his trainers, the Dathormarian, walked down the intersection halls and made eye contact with CT-1307 for half a second. But the world seemed to slow down in an instant when their eyes met. Red burning into gold. His trainer continued to the left and kept going, past the pillar wall beyond CT-1307’s line of sight.

CT-1307 was going to the left too. He gulped. That was technically the only way that he would be able to get to the pods. The elevator at that end of the hall would take him down to the level where the main training room was, which was also the level where most mini-training rooms, such as; the sparring rooms, the shooting range, the obstacle course called ‘the hole,’ and the pod barracks were. He had no choice. CT-1307 turned the corner and continued on his way toward the elevator. His trainer was gone though. _Already,_ he thought. He was so tired that he practically dragged his feet and didn’t worry about seeing his trainer. _I just wanna go to sleep,_ he yawned a bit.

He walked past a storage room with a slim door and closed his eyes for a mere second, just to hold in his yawn, and then the sound of a door opening registered in his ears. CT-1307 didn’t think much about that. _Probably a Kaminoan,_ he thought dismissively. He got maybe two more steps before a big warm hand wrapped around his mouth while another curled around the back of his neck. 

CT-1307 screeched, which was immediately muffled by the warm sweaty palm. He felt himself get pulled back and looked up, eyes desperately searching for a security camera of any kind, but they looked to be offline. CT-1307’s eyes widened. _No. No. Who is this? What’s going?_ He was dragged Into a dark room, so dark that the only origin of light was the one spilling across the floor from the open door. 

Ct-1307 reached out to the light and struggled. "Nomph! Lemp meh gom!" He tried to plead, but it was muffled again. _There's no point, is there. I don't know where I've been taken. A storage room? An examination room? No no. It wouldn't be this dark in there._

Someone closed the door in front of them, taking away the light that CT-1307 thought he would never want more. He was slammed against something hard, sure to create bruises, and he was dazed temporarily. 

"Ugh," CT-1307 groaned, smelling concrete

"Hahaha," A voice chuckled in the dark from behind. "Look at you now." The voice whispered next to his ear. 

CT-1307 breathed harshly, freaking out. _That's not a brother's voice. That's someone else entirely._ Suddenly the lights above him were turned on, blinding him. CT-1307 groaned in discomfort and blinked, trying to get used to the lighting. Once his vision had cleared of the black spots he realized where he was. A storage room, nudging by the metal table against the wall. Many metal crates and blue glowing shelves on either side of the room. And all the empty space in the middle. His golden eyes soon swept over to see there were four men surrounding him. Each and every one of them was his trainer throughout the years. 

"Look at him. He's scared." The one in the back spoke, Hayden, his human trainer from weapons training. "Bet he'll shit his pants."

"He better not, or he'll really get it. Nasty ass." The one on the left, Zas, a Nautolan, smirked. A trainer that taught CT-1307’s batch all the basic battle strategies. 

The Kiffar on the right side, Zul, kept staring at him. 

And the one holding him against the wall was none other than the Dathamorian trainer, Trent. 

Trent hissed, "Now I'm gonna say this one time and only one time, you move, and you'll get hurt. Understand? You do _anything_ and I mean _anything_ at all that we don't ask, you'll get beaten. Do you understand clone?" Trent placed his gloved hand around CT-1307's neck and squeezed pretty hard. 

CT-1307 looked up at the ceiling, trying to avoid making eye contact with the bastard.

The hand tightened, making him cough. "I said, do you understand clone? Don't make me say it again!" 

CT-1307 couldn't breathe. He tried to push against the fist around his neck, digging into his skin, but he couldn't fight his way out of the man's grasp. He could try and fight…but the four men around him were nothing but trouble and they were much bigger than him in size. CT-1307 hadn't been trained to fight bigger than Fido or Fifty-five yet. So, there was only one thing he could do…beg

"Please let me go." CT-1307 whimpered, gasping for air. 

Trent laughed in his face and looked over his shoulder at the other three. "Hahaha! Get a load of this one!"

"I don't think he'll say yes, Trent. Whatcha gonna do about it?" Zul asked, crossing his arms over his chest. 

"Don't worry about it. It doesn't matter. He can't fucking go anywhere." Trent smirked mischievously, then started to look CT-1307 oddly, like, looking him up and down. 

CT-1307 stared up at the tall man for a few seconds and fidgeted uncomfortably. _Why is he looking at me like that?_ He wondered, fearing for his life. _What if…what if I angered them so much that they want to kill me?_

"Please, please don't! Please! Don't kill me!" CT-1307 begged, feeling tears burn his eyes. 

Trent chuckled darkly, "Kill you?" He reached up and brushed a finger down the side of CT-1307's face. 

CT-1307 shivered in disgust and tilted his head away. _What the hell?_

"No, we wouldn't dream of killing a small thing like you." Trent lowered his hand and smiled at the way CT-1307 moved his head away from his…inappropriate touch. Trent snapped his fingers behind his back and said, "Hold him and take off the first layer of clothing."

CT-1307's eyes widened like giant saucers. “No! No please!" He shook his head and immediately tried to run away once Trent backed up far enough, but Zul and Hayden were in front of him in 1.5 seconds and Zul slammed him back against the wall hard enough to nearly knock him out. 

CT-1307 whimpered in pain, feeling dizzy. He heard the rustling sound of his red clothing getting taken off, then his arms felt cold. _No. No. This can't be happening. I need to fight back now!_ CT-1307 started to kick his legs up and down.

"STOP!! LET ME GO!!" He screamed at the top of his lungs, hoping that some passing soul would hear his screams from the storage room. 

His struggling and alerting screams earned him a nasty knuckle punch to the stomach. He gagged and coughed, leaning forward. Hayden pushed him against the wall again and shushed him harshly. 

_'M heads spinning,_ CT-1307 felt his eyes roll around in his head. 

Next, the first layer of his shirt and pants were removed, leaving him in only the second layer. Under that, he was just in his greys. While they were taking off his first layers, he became aware of what their goal was. That realization spiked his will to fight again. 

"Stop. _Pleaseee,"_ CT-1307 slurred, cursing inwardly. _Dammit. My head._ The hands moved away and a voice ordered for the other two to move. Then someone pressed up against his body and whispered something into his ear that he barely registered.

"You're a pretty little thing aren't cha?" Trent whispered. 

CT-1307 tilted his head away, making Trent mad. Trent grabbed his chin and squished it between his fingers and thumb and then he wrenched it to the front.

"Look at me when I am talking to you!" Trent yelled.

CT-1307 flinched hard. He reluctantly opened his eyes and slowly looked up to see evil red.

"There we are. Beautiful eyes." Trent purred, reaching down with his opposite hand. CT-1307 couldn't see. Trent wouldn't let him. He still had his chin in his hand. "You see gentlemen, a clone can be tamed. It can be broken. It can be put back together again just the way you want and like it. If you want it to obey~ you go for the throat and you show it who's boss. Like. A. Pet." Trent's hand patted the front of CT-1307's pants and the young clone tensed up. 

CT-1307 glared at the adult and growled, "The hell! Why you are-" His head cracked to the side. He gasped sharply. A hand reached up to his face, a huge bruise blemished there, and a red handprint marked him up. 

"Disrespectful bitch. You will respect me! And there is only one way to get someone as beautiful as you to respect their master." Trent looked over his shoulder and said, "Zul. Zas. Show him exactly what I mean." Trent's hand, which had inappropriately touched CT-1307, punched CT-1307 in the gut once more. 

The kid snapped forward and clutched at his stomach just as Trent backed away. Trent turned around and walked up to the two men approaching and whispered under his breath, "Don't go too far. You leave the fun part to me until I tell you otherwise, understand? Just touch him and take off the rest of his clothes. That's it."

Zul and Zas nodded in unison and walked past Trent and up to the young boy. Trent and Hayden stepped back and observed, watching creepily. Pervertedly. 

Zul curled his fingers under the hem of CT-1307's shirt and raised it up and over his head. CT-1307 heaved a breath, scared when his vision got totally blinded. Zul was so cruel enough to hold the shirt there. 

Zas went for the thin pants, bringing them down to his thighs.

"Damn. I didn't know his thighs looked so nice." Hayden commented, licking his lips. "I want a piece of that."

"Back off Hayden." Trent snapped to glare at him, growling, "I told you he's mine. You get to watch or punish him. Nothing overly…touchy until I say so." Hayden huffed and nodded.

"Psh, whatever. Not like I can't jerk off to this. It's hot." Hayden smirked, unbuckling his camouflage pants. 

"Hey Trent, can I kiss those cute lips?" Zas asked with that Nautolanan accent of his. 

Trent rolled his eyes and nodded. "Sure."

Zal surged forward and yanked CT-1307 into a forceful kiss. 

CT-1307 tensed up even harder. _Ugh! So slimy. I hate it. Stop! Stop!_ CT-1307 bit down on Zas' lip, making him bleed and yell. 

"Ow!" Zas scrambled back and touched his bottom lip. Green blood covered his fingertips. "You little bitch!" Zas exclaimed and stomped forward to slap CT-1307 across the face so hard that he almost blacked out from how hard he hit his head on the wall from the force of the slap. It inflicted so much pain to sting and explodes from his pain nerves that he cried out in pain. 

"Augh!" CT-1307's lip started to bleed. Then Zas forced himself on him again and kissed him strongly. No passion behind it at all. 

Meanwhile, Hayden was jerking off to CT-1307's pain, and Trent felt himself twitch inside his pants when Zas kissed the kid hard. It went on like that for a while, with Zas kissing CT-1307 on the lips and trailing them down his neck and collarbone while Zul took off his pants, leaving him in his greys. 

Trent wolf-whistled once the confining pants were gone. "Look at that."

Zas stopped to look down. He smirked. 

"Heh heh. Wet already, huh?" Zul chuckled, looking back at their leader. Trent's eyes had darkened some. Hayden cursed under his breath at the sight. 

CT-1307 whimpered, feeling so _violated._ "Stop. Please stop. Just let me go." He begged again. It didn't earn him a slap this time, but they did ignore him. He didn’t know which one was worse.

"Take off his shirt and then blindfold him," Trent ordered. 

Zas and Zul both nodded. "Yessir," Zas clicked his teeth and moved to continue what they were doing, the only difference was that Zas was taking off CT-1307's last shirt, the last clothing on his body other than his grey briefs, while Zul admired what was between his legs. 

After CT-1307 was left in just his briefs, Zul stood up and took a black blindfold out of his back pocket before he pulled CT-1307's head away from the wall and gingerly wrapped the blindfold around the back of his head and over his eyes. 

CT-1307 started to genuinely panic. _I can't see. I can't see. I can't see! Oh, stars. No no!_ He twisted his body to the side and felt for the walls. He could tell the others were gone. He couldn't hear them breathing near him anymore. 

It was quiet. _What's happened? Where are they?_ CT-1307 looked back and forth, seeing only black shadows or light through the blindfold, but nothing in detail. 

There was this shuffling sound. Quiet and soft. Then a warm body came near him and he was forced to his knees. He whimpered, not wanting to question what was about to happen. CT-1307 still couldn't see. 

"Please. I don't want this. Don't do this, please." He tried one last time to get them to stop this right now and leave. 

Trent pulled his pants and briefs down around his thighs and tilted his head to the side. “Yes you do, and you’re going to take it.” 

CT-1307 tried to struggle but he couldn’t and a warm hand gripped the hair on the back of his head. CT-1307 pushed back on the hand but he couldn’t do anything about it. He cringed when he felt Trent’s leaking member brush against his lips. Someone else’s hand forced his jaw open and CT-1307 clenched his eyes closed.

The teenager couldn’t do anything at all. He went practically limp and he just….let it happen. He closed his eyes slowly and all he saw was black, and darkness swarmed his heart and mind.

_Please let this be over soon._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So....there you have it, here's part of Arks' past. Please don't kill me for this. I have had this planned for AGES, and I've been so excited to flesh everything out and give Arks a real story. 
> 
> And yes...Jango isn't an asshole in this version of canon. Nope, sorry, not happening. Well, I guess he's an asshole at times but it's just him being firm mostly. You can come to your own conclusion. 😂
> 
> Beta reader/Editor- AngelWars (Ao3). She helped me so much with this part and the next part, go show her some love. 💙
> 
> What do you think? Anything you want to see?


	43. Chapter 43- The Mute (Pt. 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A year later, CT-1309's secret is revealed and gets a name...
> 
> Warning: mentioned sexual harassment of a minor

_ A year later…. _

CT-1307 was now sixteen, somewhat close to seventeen, but the year went by so slowly he felt like he had already lived through the war that had barely started. The trainers had continued their sick and twisted actions on the teenager for the year, making his life a living hell. CT-1307’s batchmates had no idea what was happening to him, and he wasn’t going to tell them because he had been threatened to stay silent. The trainers told him every time they violated him that if he told someone they would hurt his brothers then hurt him again. So, he stayed silent. Quite literally.

The teenager had stopped talking. If he did talk it was quiet and not often. He didn’t snap back at the trainers, he just followed their every order to the dime. His batchmates were continuously worried about him, noticing how late he would come back and how tears would stream down his face. But they never asked, they just made sure he knew they were there for him. They assumed that CT-1307 had stopped sneaking out to see the Commander trainees because whenever they mentioned Thorn or Wolffe or any of them CT-1307 had no reaction what-so-ever. 

A couple of times, Jango had to train them for the day with the Command class, and CT-1307 didn’t say many words to their older brothers. The Commander trainees would never admit it, but they had gotten attached to that specific squad, seeing as they had met them before; they bonded for only a few minutes but it stuck. They were concerned when their brother, one that was never afraid to snap back or defend his brothers, seemed closed off and didn’t like physical touch, and didn’t talk much anymore. But they never asked why.

A couple of months ago, since CT-1307 obviously wasn’t going to choose a name for himself, his batchmates were going to do it for him. They decided it was time for him to stop being a number and have a damn name.

“On your left!” Thirty-two yelled, dashing across the metal floor into a slide. He popped up beside CT-1307 and watched his backside. 

CT-1307 turned himself to the left and shot down one of the holographic enemies that had their sights on Thirty-two for the past five seconds. CT-1307 didn’t even acknowledge Thirty-two when he complimented his speed and accuracy. Thirty-two took notice of CT-1307’s silence, but he didn’t say anything. Instead, he looked over the metal crate they were hiding behind and continued shooting one hologram after the other.

The simulator had two rules: One, don’t get shot. Two, get shot somewhere vital like the head or the heart, you’re out for the rest of the round, no exceptions because the dead don’t talk or move, point-blank. 

A strangled grunt from behind a row of metal barriers drew CT-1307’s and Thirty-two’s attention away from what was in front of them. A familiar sound, that sounded like a loud ‘whoosh,’ sounded from the ceiling. Someone got hit and was injured, which meant CT-1307 was up. He looked back and forth across the field, remembering exactly where everyone was at the moment. His helmet tilted toward that direction to where the shout came from.  _ Eighty-nine was over there.  _

CT-1307 looked at Thirty-two silently, tilting his bucket to the left.

Thirty-two read his body language and nodded. “Yeah yeah! I gotcha!” Thirty-two peered over the edge of the crate and started to shoot again, yelling, “Come on!”

CT-1307 didn’t hesitate. He dashed across the simulator in record timing, jumped over the right barrier, and slid up beside his youngest brother. The simulation’s armor was white whenever a cadet was alive or in stable condition. Injured and critical cadets’ armor turned red. Lastly, dead cadets’ armor turned off, completely black. Another cool and helpful addition to the simulator was that white or red numbers or vital signs would become visible. They only floated above a cadet’s shoulders whenever a medic was nearby. 

CT-1307 acknowledged Eighty-nine’s vitals for a second. He wasn’t critical, so that was good. Next, CT-1307 checked out the holographic wound on Eighty-nine’s hip. The bullets that the holograms used are electrified, to give the training session a bit more sizzle and cause pain. It had to be as close to being as realistic as possible. 

“Were you hit anywhere else?” CT-1307 asked in a dull voice.

Eighty-nine shook his head, flinching. “No, just my hip.” He hated getting hit by these things. They might look harmless, but they hurt like a bitch.

“Got it,” CT-1307 said and began to work on the holographic wound, pressing a few buttons on the command keys before a holographic gauze appeared in his hand and wrapped itself around the wound. CT-1307 nodded, satisfied, and then his helmet tilted up, indicating he was checking Eighty-nine’s vitals. They had stabilized and turned back to the white color again. 

“You’ll be alright, Eighty-nine. Hang tight,” CT-1307 said, staying beside Eighty-nine for the remainder of the session, shooting over the right barrier and keeping tabs on his youngest’s brother’s vitals at the same time. The holographic wound wouldn’t bleed, but CT-1307 would lose points if he didn’t pay attention to it and the battle at hand.

Eighty-nine made a noise of discomfort, breathing hard for a few seconds. CT-1307 shot down another hologram and dropped to a knee at his brother's side. “Are you okay?”

Eighty-nine smiled tightly then hissed, “Just stings.”

CT-1307 put a comforting hand on his brother’s shoulder. “Just try to ignore it for now. Not much I can do.”

Eighty-nine really wanted to comment on his brother’s short sentences but he kept his mouth shut. He winced in pain, trying to ignore it as his older brother told him. He honestly appreciated how the other clone was watching his back, even if CT-1307 had closed himself off from them, Eighty-nine found hope in his actions.

The three other teenagers quickly made their way across the field and Fifty-five checked in with the other two. “How’s the kid?”

“I’m  _ fine!”  _ Eighty-nine exclaimed through the comm. He hated being the baby of the group.

“I didn’t ask you, snippy, I was asking Thirteen,” Fifty-five teased his younger brother.

“He’ll live,” Thirteen replied, voice quiet as it had been for the past year. And they left it at that, not wanting to ask him anything else.

Eighty-nine observed his older brother who was still behind the crate. His eyes were laser-focused and his hands didn’t shake as he held the blaster in his hands. Even if his brother looked intense at the moment, Eighty-nine knew that it would slip away once they were done, and the gentle, kind medic would return to them. Eighty-nine sighed though, wishing he could do something for his brother to make his life less hellish. 

“Almost done!” Fido shouted over the comms. “Thirty-two, cover me.”

Thirty-two partially broke cover to watch Fido’s back as he scaled and climbed to the top of the simulation to reach the finish. Fifty-five also jumped up to cover Fido. Soon, Fido reached the top and the simulation ended as he lifted a pole out of the floor. The holographic droids stopped their advances on the teenagers and powered down. 

CT-1307 helped his batchmate get to his feet, steadying him when he stumbled. “Easy,” CT-1307 whispered in his ear. Eight-nine leaned against him, letting him lead them over to their older brothers. The effects of the electro-bullet would fade soon but it still stung terribly. 

Eighty-nine looked up at his brother and softly told him, “You were a literal saint out there. Thank you for watching out for me.”

Thirteen shook his head, obviously saying the apology wasn’t necessary. Eighty-nine sighed, then loudly stated so his other brothers could hear, “I think it’s time you get a name, Thirteen.”

“Wait, we’re giving Thirteen a name?” Fido twisted around, overhearing the loud statement, as did the others.

“Well, yeah. He does so much for us by keeping us safe when we are hurt. I think it’s about time to return the favor.” Thirteen stayed silent the whole time, not saying anything at all.

Thirty-two hummed in agreement and glanced at CT-1307. “You’re right, but what should we name our precious medic?” They didn’t miss how their brother shifted his feet when he said ‘precious’.

As they walked down the hall, Eighty-two was slowly beginning to walk without his brother supporting him. The others were in deep thought. The second oldest stayed silent, curious about the names his brothers would come up with.

“What about….Ethan?”

“Uh, no way. It has to have more meaning, Thirty-two.”

“Chaz?”

“Noooo, gods, you guys suck at picking names,” Fido complained. The three boys, minus Eighty-nine, who was in deep thought, went back and forth with names that none of them liked. Sometimes they would look at CT-1307 and ask him for his personal opinion on a name and he would just shake his head, not trying to connect with any of his brothers until Eighty-nine spoke up.

While his brothers had been bickering, Eighty-nine was trying to think of a meaningful name. Their brother always made sure after a rough day of training that none of them were hurt. Sometimes the younger teenagers just need someone’s shoulder to cry on and CT-1307 was always there in a blink of an eye like he had some kind of sixth sense. He would hold them close and wouldn't ask for an explanation because he didn’t need to. That was the only time Thirteen voluntarily hugged his brothers. Thirteen may be the ‘broken’ one of the group, and they may not know all the details as to why, but they still loved him all the same.

“What about...Arks?” Eighty-nine asked in a small voice, looking at his older brother with puppy eyes. CT-1307 went into thought for a moment, then smiled lightly down at his younger brother. He stopped in the hallway, making the others stop as well. CT-1307 put a hand on the back of Eighty-nine’s neck and pulled his head close to his chest in a hug. The younger clone returned it and smiled.

“I like it,” his batchmate whispered in his ear. Eighty-nine slipped his hand in his brother’s and laced their fingers. They walked back to the pods, and for the first time in a while, Arks smiled for a long time.

* * *

  
  


Wolffe grabbed his morning rations off the metal rack and stared down at the wrapping.  _ Ugh,  _ he groaned internally.  _ Fuck mornings, literally.  _

“Hey, Wolffe! Come sit with us!” Rex waved over at him, grabbing Cody around the neck happily. Across from Rex sat Ponds. At the end of the table sat Bly all alone. He liked to be alone sometimes, but he usually sat across from Wolffe.

Wolffe looked up at him and rolled his eyes. He walked over to his batchmates and grunted, “Where else would I sit,  _ vod’ika _ ? Outside in the rain?” Rex rolled his eyes at him, getting his arm pushed off of Kote’s neck by Kote.

“Yesss, actually. That’s exactly what would happen you depressed _ shabuir _ .”

Wolffe blinked at Rex, then pointed at Rex. “Okay, for that I’mma beat the snot out of you when we spar today.”

“No no!” Rex instantly panicked, shaking his head back and forth, waving his hands in front of his face. “Have mercy!!”

_ “Nayc, _ ” Wolffe smirked, denying him mercy. 

Rex groaned loudly and slumped against the table. Kote, Ponds, and Bly all chuckled at their youngest brother’s antics.

Kote’s shoulders bounced up and down as he said, “ _ Hanar mercy bat te di’kut. _ ”

“ _ Kaysh’ll hibirar te urakto ara Kote _ ,” Wolffe said back, grinning wolfishly. Rex pretended to sob, rolling his head from side to side.

He jerked up and looked at Bly pleadingly. “Save me, brother. He’s going to kill me.”

“Nah.” Bly looked away, poking the plastic from his ration he already ate. Rex grumbled to himself and looked away, feeling betrayed.

Kote tapped the table in front of himself. “Hey, did you guys hear about CT-1307?”

“Yeah, didn’t he get his name?” Ponds asked.

Wolffe raised an eyebrow at Kote. “Woah, Woah. What do you mean he ‘got’ his name?”

“Same as you.” Kote chuckled. Wolffe rolled his golden eyes in annoyance.

“Yeah, duh. But from who? It wasn’t that kriffing shabuir, was it?”

“Oh no!” Cody waved his hands. “It was his batchmates. That’s what I overheard from them a couple of days ago after their training. They kept calling Thirteen ‘Arks,’ so I thought to tell you guys about it. Isn’t it great?”

Wolffe, Rex, Ponds, and Bly all smiled.

“That’s great! Awesome news!” Rex grinned happily.

“Heh. Congrats to the kid. He deserves it,” Bly commented, which got a nod of agreement from Ponds.

Wolffe smiled. It faltered slightly though. Then he stared down at the table, deep in thought. Cody watched him close his eyes and then he whistled at him to get his attention.

Once Wolffe opened his eyes again, Kote asked, “What’s wrong?”

“Yeah, you’ve got that look on your face like you’re about to kill someone.” Rex pointed out, cocking his head to the side in curiosity.

“I’m just...worried, is all.”

Ponds turned on the bench. “About what?”

“About the kid. He’s been acting strange lately.” Wolffe answered, facial expression grim. Eyes darkening. The silence from his brothers made him look up and he raised an eyebrow. “Don’t tell me y’all haven’t noticed?”

“Of course we noticed Wolffe, we were just waiting for you to say something about it,” Kote said, eyes holding the same grim shade in them.

“Do you think something happened?” Ponds asked.

Wolffe shrugged. “I don’t know, but I think I should go talk to Jango about it. He’ll know what to do. Besides...we won’t be here much longer, remember.” Wolffe looked up at Kote and then his eyes swept from one brother to the next.

Rex smiled softly. “Right. We are getting sent off soon.”

“Graduation,” Bly mumbled. Rex gasped.

“That means I won’t see you guys anymore.”

Kote turned slightly in his seat to face his youngest brother. Kote offered a comforting smile to him. “ _ Vod’ika _ , we’ll always be there for you no matter what. I don’t know what exactly the war will bring to us-”

“Other than death,” Wolffe added pessimistically.

Kote glared knives at him, but continued, “But we must remind ourselves that we have a batchmate out there somewhere that’s fighting their own battles, getting us closer and closer to victory. Got it?” Rex hugged Kote and nodded. 

“Yeah,” Rex answered.

Wolffe and Kote make eye contact, then smiled, understanding one another.

The five of them left after Wolffe finished up with his breakfast. Kote, Rex, Ponds, and Bly were heading off to the shooting range to get some extra shots in before their afternoon training session with the rest of the Alpha trainees. They wanted to be ready for when Alpha-17 came to their Kamino station to watch them complete their final test and graduate victoriously. Wolffe, on the other hand, dismissed their friendly invite and told them that he was going to go see Jango now rather than later, just feeling a bit better about getting it over with sooner. 

The others quickly understood and went their separate ways, telling Wolffe they’ll see him at training later.

Wolffe turned around and went in the opposite direction, toward the nearest elevator. Jango technically stayed on the top level of the station, so Wolffe had to take the elevator to get up there.  _ Alright, let’s hope Jango is actually there,  _ Wolffe thought.

… 

Wolffe approached the man’s door on the top level of the establishment. From up here, he could hear the rain a lot better. Wolffe took a deep breath and rapped his knuckles against the metal door three times, then he waited patiently. 

The door opened fourteen seconds later. Jango opened the door and smiled when he recognized the cadet to be Wolffe.

“Ah, Wolffe. What brings you up here?” Jango asked kindly, leaning against the door frame.

“There’s no better way to say this, so, I need to talk to you about something, about another cadet.” Wolffe bluntly said, not knowing another way to say it.

Jango nodded. 

“May I come in?” Wolffe asked, looking over Jango’s shoulder.

“Oh, of course.” Jango opened his mouth a slight bit and moved out of the way, giving Wolffe enough room to slip inside. Jango closed the door once he was in. “Is it a private matter?”

“Yes, very. It shouldn’t be spoken about anywhere where the  _ Kaminiis _ can overhear.” Wolffe walked in and couldn’t help but look around the room. The man had this giant window that stretched from one corner of the room to the other that overlooked the raging ocean below. Kamino’s ocean. A force to be reckoned with.

“Well, can you give me just a moment? I was doing something before you came in and I need to finish up real quick.” Jango gestured to the door beside him. Wolffe nodded and watched him disappear around the bend.

Wolffe looked around the room that was the size of a suite. It wasn’t all that fancy. Mostly white with a few grey accents here and there as the secondary color choice for the room, but nothing much else besides that. There was a King’s sized bed to Wolffe’s left. Two nightstands on either side of it and a couple of other furniture that wasn’t exactly important under Wolffe’s stormy gaze.

Suddenly, the door opposite the room Jango walked into opened, and a small boy walked out of it. Wolffe stared at him and tensed up. The boy didn’t even see him at first. He was reading something on a holographic tablet. Then he looked up and the two met eyes. Wolffe immediately recognized who it was in front of him.  _ Jango’s kid, Boba.  _

Boba stared at the clone and tilted his head to the side. His brown curls drifted to one side of his forehead at the motion. 

“Where’s my father?” Boba asked Wolffe.

“He said he had something to take care of real quick,” Wolffe answered,

Boba glanced over his shoulder and then shrugged. “Oh okay.” He walked right over to the small seat in the corner that could spin on its axis. “Why are you here?” He asked suddenly, quirking an eyebrow up at Wolffe, but his hazel eyes glimmered with youthful curiosity.

“I need to talk to Jango.”

“Oh okay.”

An awkward silence hung over them after that. Wolffe didn’t exactly ‘like’ the kid and he didn’t want to get on his bad side either. The kid just had this negative aura about him. Wolffe kept his distance and waited for Jango to return.

The door on the left opened once again and Jango walked out, holopad in hand. He spotted his son in the corner and jabbed a thumb over his shoulder.

“Boba, can you give me and Wolffe some privacy please?” 

Wolffe tensed up even further after Jango called him by his name. He didn’t like the look in Boba’s eyes. 

“Of course father,” Boba responded, hopping right out of the seat. He stalked past Jango and right back into the room on the right.

Once he was gone, Jango acknowledged Wolffe’s presence again. “My apologies. I had to finish up some prior business.”

“It’s alright sir.” Wolffe relaxed his tense muscles and looked at Jango.

Jango crossed his arms over his chest and asked, “Now what exactly do you need to talk to me about?”

“I need to talk to you about Arks, erm, CT-1307. The others and I have taken notice that he has been quiet lately, more so than usual. I am sure you’ve noticed as well.” Wolffe started off with that, building up to the issue at hand that worries him. “The other Alpha trainees and I are about to graduate soon, and I feel a bit uncomfortable leaving without getting the chance to talk to Arks myself about the issue. I won’t be able to, with being busy and all, and I need someone else to talk to him. Sir, I would like to personally ask if you can find Arks and talk to him once I am gone?” Wolffe concluded, feeling this heavyweight lift from his tired and aching shoulders.

Jango nodded, smiling lightly. “Of course I’ll talk to him. I too have found it a bit peculiar that he’s been so quiet and distant, detached if you will. So yes, I'll talk to him for you Wolffe, and make sure he's alright.”

Wolffe smiled at Jango, feeling so grateful for his kindness that never ceased to amaze Wolffe. “Thank you, sir.”

_ Three days later…. _

Arks was completely numb. His jaw hurt and the tear tracks have now dried on his face. The teenager was staring at the wall, replaying what had just happened, over….and over….and over again. Arks folded his arms over his knees and cried. He just cried. His sobs ripped out of his throat painfully.

Trainers weren’t always the nicest people ever but this….this was something completely different. And it had been happening for over  _ a year.  _ His assaulters had specifically told him that if he blabbed to someone, they would get him decommissioned. He really wanted to tell his older brothers; whether it was Wolffe, Rex, Cody, hell even Fox, but he didn't want to put his brothers in danger because he told them; he wasn’t about to test his trainers’ wrath. There was one person he could go to, though. Jango. Arks couldn’t keep this a secret to himself anymore. His walls were cracking and he was about to break and crumble to the ground. Maybe never recovering again.

Arks didn’t really remember the walk to Jango’s quarters. All he was aware of was that there was no one else awake. It was way past lights-out but Arks couldn’t care less about being punished for being up. The halls seemed endless, passing door after door and still not reaching Jango’s room. He really hoped General Shaak Ti wasn’t up and walking around; he’d rather talk to Jango than Shaak Ti even if she was a kind Jedi.

Arks wasn’t exactly sure why he wanted Jango. Maybe it was because Jango was also one of his trainers those few times, but he felt like there was another reason. Arks and the other clones could tell at the beginning of their training that Jango didn’t want to get close to them. He tried to put distance between them but it didn’t work after a hard day of interrogation training and they needed some form of physical comfort, or after someone lost a batchmate in a training accident and needed reassurance from an adult. And then Jango asked for a clone for himself, one that would age normally. 

Arks was suddenly aware that he was in front of Jango’s door. His hand hovered over the command pad, shaking. He could walk away and no one would know. Ever. He could ignore the physical and emotional pain for even longer. He could keep his mouth shut and be the good soldier the Kaminoans wanted; scientists that hated them.  _ Fuck that. _

Arks gritted his teeth and pressed the access key, waiting for Jango to appear, dropping his chin to his chest. Tears blurred his vision as he heard footsteps come closer to the door. He braced himself, becoming tense. 

The door slid open and the figure that was previously moving froze. Arks turned his body away slightly, for some reason expecting Jango to hit him. 

“Arks? What are you doing here, kid?” Jango’s voice was rough and scratchy with sleep, but the concern was still evident. Arks didn’t answer. He tried but he couldn't get his vocal cords to work. Jango took a step closer, and took two fingers and put them under Ark’s chin. He lifted the teenager’s head up slowly, meeting very familiar eyes. 

“Arks?” Jango asked again, seeing the tears in his eyes. Arks was shaking, fear in his shattered golden orbs. Jango could immediately tell something was seriously wrong. The Arks he knew was always confident and always ready to talk back, but this was a different Arks entirely that he didn’t know. However, he did remember that Arks had been quiet the last time he trained his squad.

“Come on.” Jango gave Arks a tilt of his head, telling him to come inside. Arks hesitated before stepping in fully, subconsciously crossing his arms over his chest like he was trying to protect himself. Jango looked at the door to the left of him and listened for any indicative sounds of someone moving, but all he heard was silence.  _ Good, Boba is asleep,  _ Jango thought and sighed.

He kept his steps even, not getting too close to Arks as he led him into a living room of his quarters. Jango pointed to one of the couches and Arks obeyed automatically and mindlessly. And that scared Jango. Jango sat directly in front of him, keeping his hands tucked in his lap. “Arks,” the man waited for the teenager to look at him through his wet eyelashes. “Do you want to tell me why you came here at 0300 hours?”

Arks had previously thought it would be easier to open up to his brothers and his fath- _ trainer _ but his thought process changed. Arks shook his head, unable to say anything. Adult's _used_ him. and he didn’t fight back like he was trained to do. 

Jango knew he wasn’t going to get anywhere if all he did was try to get Arks to talk. “Did something happen?”

Arks slowly nodded twice, looking away again. Jango sighed, “Were you hurt by someone?”

Arks nodded, giving him no verbal answer still, shaking even more as Jango was getting closer to the truth. Jango didn’t like the way this conversation was going. 

“Okay...was it just one person or more than one?”

Arks flashed a shaky four to Jango who nodded. The teenager brought his knees up to his chest, staring at the floor. He appreciated that Jango didn’t try to step closer. He would’ve jumped away if he did. 

“Which four of your brothers was it?”

Arks gulped; Jango thought it was his brothers. He could detect that anger in Jango’s voice but it was about to go to the max in a moment when he told him it wasn’t his brothers. Arks shook his head, the crying started up again. 

Now Jango stood up. Arks flinched when he heard his footsteps walk approach him from the front. Jango dropped to one knee, eyes burning with fury. He roughly turned Ark’s chin towards him, feeling him jump.

When Jango spoke, his voice was filled with venom. “Arks, answer truthfully, was it some of the trainers?”

Arks didn’t know why his brain went into overdrive and he didn’t know why he shook his goddamn head out of pure fear. He honestly hoped Jango caught his lie.

Jango went into the next sentence with a gentler approach, “Arks, you won’t be in trouble if you tell me the truth. I just want to help you, kid.”

Jango took his silence as his answer. “I’m going to ask again but you’re going to have to give me a verbal answer.” Arks let out a sob, wanting so badly to move away from Jango but at the same time, he wanted Jango to hug him.

“ Arks, was it the trainers?” Jango asked slowly, praying that Arks would answer ‘yes’ so he could punch their faces in. Arks stayed silent, two sides of his mind battling inside his head.

Jango sighed again but remained completely patient with him. “Arks. I need you to tell me. If you don’t tell me I can’t help you. You know how it goes with you kids; it’s your words against theirs’. The Kaminoans won’t believe you, but if you tell me, I  _ promise _ I will help you.” Arks quickly ran the sentence through his head, testing the logic. 

Jango asked for the last time, “Was it the trainers?”

Arks nodded. “Y-yes.” Arks broke down into sobs, hunching forward. Jango’s hand went to his shoulder, grip tightening on the joint gently.

Jango had no fucking clue how to comfort a teenager. A toddler, sure, but an emotionally unstable crying teenager that was just assaulted somehow and wasn’t technically his kid; no. And it was Arks; the teenager that used to be unafraid to speak up and always had a witty comeback. The only teenager Jango had ever comforted was Rex after he lost all his first batchmates, and he left most of the comforting to the other boys.

Jango didn’t say anything as Arks broke down, just running a gentle hand over his shoulder. He made a few soft shushing noises every minute or so, trying to make this as least awkward as possible.

Jango let him cry for a few more minutes before he asked another important question, “Arks, what did they do?”

“T-they  _ u-used _ me,” Arks stuttered through, deciding the quicker he said it the sooner it would be over.

Jango’s hands froze where they were. Arks took his silence as anger and he flinched and pulled away from the man. Jango silently stood up and walked a few feet away to gather his thoughts and maybe punch the air a few times. Arks trained his ears on Jango’s footsteps and it sounded like he was pacing slowly but angrily. Arks stayed in his balled-up position on the small cushioned chair, waiting for Jango to explode….but he never did.

After Jango got his emotions under control, he calmly walked back over to the couch Arks was crying on. The bounty hunter dropped back onto his knees in front of him and placed a hand on the armrest of the chair and not on Arks.

“Arks, can I hug you?” Jango asked him in a rare, soft voice.

Arks’ eyes shot up to meet his, confused about why Jango of all people was offering comfort. But Arks jerkily nodded, wanting some type of human comfort that wasn’t….evil. Jango slowly wrapped an arm around the teenager’s back and brought him forward. Arks rested his forehead on Jango’s collarbone.

“I’m so sorry, Arks. So sorry,” Jango whispered to him, feeling Arks’ chest heave with his sobs. Arks clung to him, craving the touch Jango was giving him; it was different than hugging his brothers. It was….parental.

“They’ll get what they deserve. I promise you, Arks,” Jango swore, vowing to severely punish the trainers. He’ll get their names later. Right now Arks was his main focus.

Jango looked down at the carpeted floor. “How long has this been happening?”

Arks trembled in his arms, hands shaking as he gripped the back of Jango’s shirt. “A y-year.”

Jango sighed, “Damn it, Arks.” Arks shrunk at the reprimand but Jango kept his grip tight. “Shhhh, shhh, I'm not mad at you,  _ ad’ika _ ; just the fact that you were being….hurt and didn’t tell me.”

“I didn’t feel like I could,” Arks muttered into his neck.

That caused Jango to frown in confusion. He wrangled Arks back and looked into the teenager’s golden eyes. “Why did you feel like that?”

Arks shrugged, but he didn’t pull his gaze away. “I mean, yes, you’re my trainer, but I’m not the Commander trainees. You care for them but not regular, unspecial clones like me. It’s just the way it is.”

Jango felt so angry at himself for letting the teenager feel like that. “Do your brothers feel the same?”

“Yeah, most of them at least.” Arks felt stupid. He just admitted to his donor that he felt like he couldn’t come to him because he didn’t feel loved enough by someone that wasn’t his father.  _ Idiot _ , Arks mentally cursed himself.

Jango felt pity for the teenager in front of him. He brought him closer once again, feeling mushy inside and he could decide if he liked it or not. “I’m so sorry, Arks. I’ve always tried to not get attached to all of you so none of us got hurt in the process. I’m sorry I couldn’t do anything to stop them.”

Arks nuzzled closer, not caring if he was being seen as a pitiful child by Jango. “I-It wasn’t your fault…”

Jango stroked his dark hair, letting his parental instincts kick in. “Arks, can you give me their names? You don’t have to right now but will you give them to me later?”

Arks thought for a moment. The abuse could be finally over and he could be free of the  _ physical _ torment, but the emotional and mental damage would never go away. It never does with any trauma done to a child or even an adult. “I-I….I’ll give you their names.”

Jango nodded.

“Zal, Zus, Hayden, and...Trent.” Arks finished sharing the names of all of the trainers that sexually harassed him.

Jango growled in his throat. His eyes practically glow with anger. Then he calmed down and nodded. “Thank you for telling me their names, Arks. It was very brave of you.”

Arks nodded, trembling hard. Jango looked at him questioningly, wondering why the poor thing was shaking so hard. Arks wrapped his arms around himself and shook his head, trying to forget everything.

“Do you need some time alone?” Jango asked.

“N-No! No, please, don’t leave. I..I just need a second.”

Jango stayed in his crouch, waiting for Arks to get a sense of everything. Soon his tears ran dry and he didn’t have the will to cry or sob anymore. Jango’s thumb drew small circles on the back of his hand, tugging his hand lightly to get Arks’ eyes to flick up to his.

“Who else knows, kiddo?” Jango asked curiously.

Arks shook his head slowly, feeling slightly numb. “No one else knows. I-I...they threatened the others.”

Jango added that to the long list that he was going to kill Zas, Hayden, Zul, and Trent for. They stayed in silence but it was comforting to Arks, the most comfort he could get other than his batchmates.

“You know, Wolffe is really worried about you,” Jango mentioned to Arks gently. Arks looked at him through his eyelashes and cocked his head to the side. “He said you haven’t been yourself and that you haven’t been talking.”

Arks dropped his chin to his chest at the mention of his quiet nature. Jango continued to look at Arks but didn’t push direct eye-contact. “Do you want to talk about you not talking?”

Arks shrugged, knowing Jango wasn’t going to drop the subject. “It’s easier to not talk. Don’t have to worry about getting in trouble or getting yelled at for saying the wrong thing,” Arks explained sadly.

Jango sighed, hating Arks’ coping mechanisms, but he might as well try to fix it now. “Arks, from what I remember, you love to talk. It’s a part of your personality; you are a social teenager. And it's sad to see you not want to talk anymore.”

Arks shook his head which stopped Jango’s words. “I know you’re going to try and get me to talk more but it’s not worth it. I’m done talking.”

Jango didn’t like that statement but pushed forward, physically moving Arks closer to him. “And I can’t make choices for you Arks, but you need to tell someone you trust. You can’t shoulder this all on your own.” The older man sat on the couch next to him. “You should tell Wolffe. He’s really worried about you.”

Arks looked like he didn’t know what to do. He leaned his head on Jango’s shoulder, soaking up the fatherly comfort he was receiving; he highly doubted he would ever get parental love like this ever again. “Don’t know, Jango.”

Jango barely heard the mutter but he got the gist, “I can’t make you tell him Arks, but I think it would be good for you and Wolffe. He’ll be graduating in about a week  _ ad’ika _ . It’s now or never with him.”

Arks nodded, musing over the advice, and subconsciously curled around Jango’s arm. Jango looked down with a soft smile, seeing Arks relax against him. Arks suddenly tensed up, remembering who he was leaning against. Jango wrapped an arm around his shoulders and kept him close to his side. 

Arks glanced up at him with puppy eyes. “Can I stay a little longer? You feel...safe.”

Jango pushed all the warmth he felt in his chest down for the time being. “Of course. Stay as long as you want.”

Arks nuzzled closer and sighed heavily, letting his eyes close for a few minutes. “Thank you…”

Jango smiled softly and twisted one of Arks’ curls around his finger. “You’re welcome Ark’ika.”

  
  
  
  


Arks fidgeted as he stood in the doorway of the sleeping pod room that was reserved for the Commanding Officer trainees. Wolffe and his batchmates would be graduating and this was his last chance to tell Wolffe about the past year. 

Arks sighed heavily and crossed his arms over his chest before taking a step into the room. Thorn and the newly named Fox were wrestling playfully on the floor, not really trying to hurt one another. Stone was rolling his eyes from up in his pod. Rex was lying with his head on Kote’s lap, letting his brother finger-comb his hair. The natural blonde’s eyes seemed to be a little misty but Arks didn’t blame him; he might not see his brothers again once they were shipped off to different generals. Wolffe, Ponds, and Bly were sitting on their bunks, with Wolffe being closest to the floor.

“Arks?” Kote’s voice broke through the sixteen-year-old’s musing. Kote looked down at Arks, with the others doing the same. Arks looked up at Kote.

“What are you doin’ here, kiddo?” Thorn asked softly like he was talking to a scared animal. He hadn’t forgotten how Arks had changed within the year.

Arks looked right at Wolffe. His older brother had a mixture of concern and softness in his eyes. “Can I talk to you?” Arks asked.

Wolffe frowned and looked around to check for any trainers, finding none, and then swiftly nodded, not asking permission from his older brothers. “Of course.” Wolffe hopped down from his pod and made his way towards Arks. Wolffe put a hand on his shoulder and steered him down the hall slightly. He looked over his shoulder and saw confused and questioning glances his brothers were giving him. Wolffe just shrugged, equally as confused. Wolffe and Arks slowed to a stop and Arks leaned his back against the wall. Arks looked down at the floor. Wolffe patiently waited for his younger brother to speak.

“Jango said you were worried about me because I’ve been quiet and not...normal for the past year?” Arks asked for clarification and didn’t look up from the floor.

Wolffe nodded. “Yeah, I did. You were kinda scaring me, kid. But Jango said he was going to talk to you after I graduated?”

Arks started to play with his fingers but Wolffe gently grabbed his hands, not missing the way he flinched at first. “I-I found him first I guess,” Arks finally responded.

Wolffe took a step closer, squeezing his hands. “Can you explain?”

Arks’ breathing stuttered but became stable. “I-I went to him after….” Arks let a few tears fall and he became slightly frustrated and brushed them away. 

Wolffe did not like where this was going and he didn't like seeing his younger brother cry. “After what Arks?”

“After….a year of Zul, Hayden, Zas, and T-Trent abusing me,” Arks cried heavier, “They left me in one of the storage rooms after they were done and I-I just had had enough. I couldn’t deal with it anymore.”

Wolffe’s hands slid up to his shoulders. “Arks, did they abuse you physically?”Arks nodded, on the verge of collapsing into his brother’s chest.

“Mentally?”

“Y-yes.”

“W-what about sexually?”

Arks fell silent at that and Wolffe connected the dots when Arks flung himself into Wolffe’s arms. The gruff clone caught Arks and hugged him close. “I-I’m so sorry, Arks.” Wolffe was at a loss for words. Arks sobbed quietly, reliving the pain. 

Wolffe tsked lightly, burying his nose into Arks’ soft curls. “Oh  _ vod’ika _ , for a year?”

Arks nodded into his neck, arms gripping his brother’s torso tightly. Wolffe felt anger boil inside of him for his brother. 

“Oh Arks.” That was all Wolffe could say and all he could do was hold him. Arks didn’t really know why he was crying on his older brother that was only a few months older than him, but Wolffe felt safe, just like Jango.

"I am so, so sorry that happened to you. I wish I could've protected you and stopped it sooner." Wolffe whispered against Arks' hair. 

Arks shook his head from side to side but felt too tired to look up at Wolffe again. "You couldn't have stopped it then…and I don't think you can stop it now, really." Arks mumbled. 

Wolffe's hand tightened on the mahogany red sleeves under the bright red shoulder parts of Arks' tunic. "Arks, this has been going on for an entire year and I never noticed something was wrong. I should've noticed. I am your older brother and I still didn't. I am sorry for that."

Arks finally looked up at Wolffe and shook his head once more, tears stinging his eyes. "It's not your fault. You have no fault in this, not at all. You couldn't have known. They made sure of that." Arks saw the sadness in Wolffe's golden eyes anyway and he wrapped his arms around his older brother. "Please don't feel sad Wolffe. I…I don't want you to be."

"Don't ask that of me, kid. Of course, I'll feel sad about this." Wolffe brushed a hand back against Arks' hair. "Why wouldn't I?"

Arks nodded and sighed, leaning against him. Wolffe wrapped his arms around Arks. They stayed like that for a while. After a few more minutes, Wolffe walked Arks back into the pod sleeping section, avoiding the questioning gazes of his brothers, one arm wrapped around the back of Arks' neck protectively. 

"Go ahead back to your pod, kiddo. We have a long day tomorrow." Wolffe said to Arks, giving him a sad look. 

Arks stared at the floor and folded his hands over one another behind his back. "Can…can I.." Arks blushed, feeling nervous to ask this. "I don't wanna be alone, so..can I stay with you?" 

Wolffe's batchmates all made similar soft sounds. Their hearts melted. Wolffe smiled at that and ruffled Arks' hair. 

"Yeah kid, you can. I don't know how the hell we'll manage to fit you in there…but we'll figure it out. Come on." Wolffe waved his hand and led Arks over to the ladder. 

Arks felt giddy inside. His eyes lit up like fireworks. 

Wolffe pressed a button next to his pod and let it open all the way, checking out the space inside to determine if they could indeed fit in there together. He nodded to himself and looked down at Arks. "Alright, I'll get in first," Wolffe said, then hopped into his sleeping pod. 

Arks climbed up the short distance from the floor and jumped in beside Wolffe. Arks immediately curled up on his left side and smiled to himself, quickly falling asleep. 

Rex giggled, "Heh heh. Looks like Wolffe already adopted one."

"Shut it,  _ vod'ika _ ." Wolffe rolled his eyes, but a fond smile still graced his face. Then Wolffe reached up for the button and the sleeping pod closed thereafter. 

Wolffe turned on his back and stared up at the ceiling of his pod, both arms crossed behind his head. He thought about his entire day, from his last breakfast with his brothers, to extra training, his final training with all of his brothers, and now they'll all sleep together in their sleeping pods for the last time. 

Wolffe felt this odd tightness in his chest at the thought of possibly never seeing them again.  _ This war…it's gonna be rough. I can tell just by looking at Jango's face every day, or the training sessions we have to endure. I just hope that it ends quickly and we win this, for the Republic.  _

While Wolffe was musing, Arks stared at the emergency lights on the sides of the pod illuminating the inside dimly. He made a soft huff beside him, which was cute, drawing a soft exhale from Wolffe. The older teenager turned onto his left side and curled around the younger boy, bringing Arks back to press his back against his chest. Wolffe smiled to himself and fell asleep just like that. 

* * *

  
  


Arks stared straight ahead. The rushing sound of them passing through the shield into the resounding hanger bay sounded outside the metal doors of the LAAT. The red lights illuminating the small enclosed space filled with heat gave it an eerie glow. 

The LAAT shook as they landed. Then the doors opened thereafter. Arks left the LAAT shuttle cargo hold and hopped off, booted feet hitting the metal floor of the hangar bay. Arks took a quick look around, searching for two others, then he started to move toward the middle of the hangar bay where most others were headed towards.

After a hard battle, the 403rd attack battalion's troopers would walk over and group up in parade lines to wait 'impatiently' for their General to arrive and reprimand for any 'possible' mistake they made during the mission. 

Most times the battalion wouldn't make any mistakes whatever and would complete a mission successfully and they'd still get yelled at for either: losing a lot of men, using up too much ammo, not following directions fast enough, lagging behind, moving too slow, acting 'stupid,' getting hurt stupidly, bringing a dying trooper back with them to the start destroyer after a battle, helping one another, carrying a minorly injured trooper onto the LAATs in front of their General, questioning his authority, not doing exactly as he ordered, or going against his orders. The one that most got brought up when they got reprimanded was the former. But how could they not? Their battalion, so far since this war started, was the only one losing so many troopers in  _ one singular battle.  _

Arks got in line beside a few other troopers and stayed absolutely still, like a stone, emotionless statue. Many injured troopers stumbled their way into lines across from him and he flinched, wanting so badly to help them, but it wasn't allowed. Any troopers that weren't conscious or couldn't physically walk because both of their legs were broken could move their asses out of the LAATs without a problem, even if one of their legs was broken, they had a concussion or something else that wasn't majorly impairing. 

Arks watched one of his batchmates, Eighty-nine, stumble into the line across from Arks facing him. The young clone looked just about ready to collapse, and Arks could tell even with the kid's helmet on.  _ Dammit,  _ Arks cursed internally. 

The main hangar door that was connected to the main hallway opened up. Their General walked out with a steady pace. All troopers were already in their lines by the time he entered the room.

Arks kept his chin tilted up just slightly and he kept his eyes forward. The room was filled with this tense aura that could crush them all in an instant. Arks glanced to his right without visibly tilting his helmet and noticed that the trooper beside him was shaking terribly. His breaths rasped out of him, rattling his chest.

Arks and every trooper in this room felt just like that trooper now. Scared. 

Their General stopped at the very front of the line in the large gap-like aisle they made for him to walk down. His golden eyes pierced into their shattering souls. Arks gritted his teeth under his helmet and clenched his jaw.  _ Kriffing Krell.  _

"Take off your helmets, clones!" Krell ordered, looking at each and every one of them. The clones looked at each other from the corner of their eyes and slowly removed their helmets. They did it at the same time so there could be no reason for one of them getting into trouble. The room was so quiet that the battalion could tell Krell was pissed.

The Jedi glared at them, eyes sweeping the room, scowling. Krell could see they were obviously missing troopers from their battalion. His eyes snapped to Arks, who was one of four medics in the battalion and the head medic, and asked in a clipped tone, “Clone, how many of our forces have we lost?"

Arks sighed under his breath, knowing Krell was going to blow a gasket “A full platoon and twenty other men, sir.” Arks hated speaking or being put on the spot. Luckily one of the older troopers knew sign language and taught it to him so he could communicate a different way if he became uncomfortable. He had become fully mute once he was off Kamino, feeling misplaced guilt after Jango had, for lack of a better term, euthanized the trainers that harassed him and made sure the other many trainers on Kamino knew to never touch one of the clones like that again, for they would face Jango’s wrath next time, in which case there wouldn't be a next time because the trainers knew he was serious. 

Krell muttered curses under his breath, swiftly turning his head to the left, and then he looked back down the aisle again, glaring at all of the clones. When he did, Eighty-nine tried to stay as still as possible to make it seem like he wasn’t swaying in place.

“All of you are worthless! How hard is it to stay alive?! It is simple!" Krell shouted, breaking the tense silence, heightening all of the clones' anxiety levels from forty to one hundred. Some of the clones flinched. Fido was on the other side of Eighty-nine and was trying to brace his little brother against his side. 

Arks observed his brother from a distance. Arks tilted his head down a bit to notice the gash in Eighty-nine's side. The charred, broken armor pointed out jaggedly from what was once his plackart, covered in crimson red.  _ Shit. He's bleeding heavily. He needs help soon,  _ Arks thought, staring hard at the wound.  _ He won't die immediately from it, but if he keeps bleeding like that, he might not make it.  _ he 

“Do not think for a second that I will step in to save your sorry asses! That is not my job! I will not stand for it!” Krell's voice jerked Arks from his concerned thoughts. 

Eighty-nine’s breathing rasped, eyes fluttering for half a second. It sounded like he was breathing underwater. Fido, subtly linked their hands together, blocking the soft touch behind his back so Krell wouldn't see. He was terrified his baby brother would collapse in front of Krell and get in so much trouble for it. But his worst nightmare came true when Eighty-nine whimpered and suddenly dropped to the floor, much to the dismay of Fido, who tried to catch him.

Krell stopped his angered rampage to stare at the clone on the ground who was miraculously still conscious. Fido remained standing at attention, fist clenching behind his back. He gritted his teeth. Krell stomped over to Eighty-nine and towered over him. 

“Tell me, clone, explain to me why you thought it would be appropriate to lay out here and dirty up  _ my  _ floor." Krell glared at him. "Why did you get out of line?"

Eighty-nine slowly and shakingly looked up to meet Krell's furious eyes. He couldn't answer that could be or could be not, 'rhetorical question.'

"How could a weakling like you still be alive when you can’t even stand at attention properly? You should’ve died on that field like the failure you are and not disrespect me!” Krell’s words went straight to Eighty-nine’s heart, but he was used to hearing these kinds of harsh and cruel words. 

Arks was shaking in anger though, feeling protective over Eighty-nine. 

Krell kept going. "You could've spared us the wasted time, but no. You wanted to fall out on the floor, bleeding all over it, making your fellow clones' jobs even harder for them, and you did it all because you want to be weak." He chuckled to himself, eyes seemingly glowing hotter than the hottest Suns in the galaxy. "How pathetic," Krell spat poisonously. "Perhaps I should just go ahead and give you mercy, you pathetic thing. End your meaningless life here and now and get rid of such a waste of space-"

"It sounds like you’re speaking Basic, but I can’t understand a single word you just said because all of it was bullshit.” a clone's voice sounded from behind Krell with a snippy tone. 

All the troopers in the room looked at one another in confusion. They all wondered the same thing,  _ who the kriff said that?  _ The clones who stood directly next to or behind Arks stared at him. Arks stomped out, breaking the line, glaring daggers at his general. 

"He went out there and risked his life for you! He's bleeding all over your floor, oh boo hoo, he's bleeding because he fought for you!" Arks jabbed a finger at Krell angrily. "How dare you yell at him, threaten him, and call  _ him  _ weak, someone who's braver than  _ you? _ " Arks exclaimed, showing how pissed off he was. 

He didn't care if he was being disrespectful or rude, but someone had to shut the Besalisk up. And that person would be Arks. However, Arks concluded as respectfully as he could by adding, "So respectfully,  _ sir,  _ just leave him alone. "

Every single trooper stared in awe—surprised and silently cheering their brave medic on, while others silently dreaded the result of his defiant behavior. Their general slowly turned to face him, looking downright murderous, an odd aura humming about him. Krell stared Arks down for a few seconds, eyes burning into his soul, and then Krell's green lips twisted up into a malicious grin. 

Arks recognized that smile.  _ Shit,  _ he cursed internally. Arks felt this strange pressure around his throat, a sudden dryness that tickled the back of his throat, effectively closing off his windpipe. Next, his feet left the floor. Arks grabbed at his own throat with trembling hands and choked, grabbing at the invisible force around his neck, desperate to breathe. Though his struggle was futile. 

Krell took two menacing forward, impossibly closer to Arks, still smiling with an evil gleam in his eyes. “You disrespectful little shit. You want to yell at me? Well, let’s see how that works out for you.” Arks choked more. 

Krell swung his arm and threw Arks forty feet into an LAAT. Arks' back slammed against the cold metal, resulting in a large banging sound. The troopers that were still at attention flinched at the noise, eyes falling to the medic who was lying on the floor. Arks groaned softly in pain, feeling the cold floor biting at his bare hands. 

Krell stalked towards Arks’ hunched form, and the clones in his way parted, making a path for him. While Krell’s back was turned, Fido quickly picked Eighty-nine up and a different medic slipped away towards them. Fido helped Eighty-nine lean back against his chest and shushed him slightly, hoping Krell wouldn’t bother to remember Eighty-nine to punish him later. 

Arks panted heavily as Krell lifted him up again with the Force and yanked him forward, having him float, suspended in midair in front of him, and Krell found amusement in it. It was disturbing. Krell didn’t even choke Arks the second time around when he force pushed him backward, slamming Arks against the side of the ship. Arks got all the wind knocked out of him as a result. 

The Jedi kept Arks pinned to the ship like a struggling butterfly pinned to a board. Arks choked on a gasp when Krell slowly closed his fist inward, force-choking him. Though, Arks wasn’t going to let his tears fall and give Krell the satisfaction. He really wished he had an older brother that was a Commander with him because he knew Fido couldn’t do anything being a CT.

“You dare talk to me that way." Krell's deep voice cut through his choking. "Insubordination and disrespect calls for punishment of the highest order, clone.” And with that, Krell started to squeeze his hand into a much tighter fist, causing Arks to struggle a little.

Arks gasped and choked loudly, nearly gagging. He couldn't breathe. His throat had tightened shut thanks to the invisible vice grip meaning to kill him.  _ Is this how I go out? Being disobedient? A loud-mouth? Is that what gets me killed in the end?  _ Arks started to cry involuntarily and his vision blurred, a reaction to him not getting any more oxygen. It twitched and jerked in Krell's hold. A feeble attempt to escape and kriffing breathe.

_ Kriff. I thought I would go out on the battlefield like everyone else. Heh. Who knew that he... _ Arks glared at Krell's through pinched eyes,  _ would be the one to kill me and not some clanker?  _

Arks' brothers and fellow soldiers stood by and watched on in horror, unable to do a goddamn thing to help or stop Krell lest they had a stupid death wish like Arks. 

Suddenly, a spark of ridiculously hot pain and discomfort shot through Arks like a bullet, and it was followed by a shape crack that flooded the room. 

Arks gasped in shock and tensed up, eyes wide in fear and pain, and his eyebrows lowered, accompanied by a wince. Arks ears rang sharply. All the sounds of the world faded away. All he could see beyond the black spots that had attacked his vision was Krell's yellow eyes. 

But before the black spots took over, Krell dropped Arks onto the floor. Arks coughed, loud and hacking, as he curled up on the floor, back curved outward as he tried to catch his breath. Krell kneeled before Arks, reached down, and lifted Arks' chin up so then he could look at him. 

Arks couldn't find the energy to glare or sneer at his general. Not even a general, but a monster. 

"You should be grateful that you are useful, or I would've destroyed your voice completely, clone," Krell jeered, grinning madly. Then he stood up and turned his back to the hurt medic. "I've made him another example of what will happen if you disobey me or talk back to me, so remember well," Krell spoke to them, walking away from Arks. "Clean this up, and don't let me hear such disobedience again, from  _ any  _ of you. Do I make myself very clear?"

"Yessir!" All of the troopers responded in unison, listening to orders. 

Krell nodded to himself, satisfied, and left the room. All of the clones stayed exactly where they were until he was gone, afterwards, they felt a little bit more at ease and moved from their statue-like positions. The ones closest to Arks looked down at him, pitying him. 

Arks shivered on the floor, scared to even reach up and touch his throat. Panicked thoughts filtered across his mind. Those yellow eyes...they stared into him like those of the trainers did back then. He couldn't get that out of his mind. 

One of the medics approached Arks and offered a helping hand. Arks slowly looked up at him, stared silently, and then he let himself get pulled up. Once he was on his own two feet, Arks realized that his feet…it felt like they weren't there anymore. He felt light headed. The medic nearly stood close to him, seemingly talking to him, perhaps asking questions, but Arks did not answer. Instead, he stared ahead. 

Fido walked over to him, leaving Eighty-nine with another medic, and stood in front of Arks. "Arks? Are you okay?" Fido asked, knowing the answer already. Dark purple bruises have already started to form on Arks' neck, which seemed impossible; considering the Besalisk didn't even touch him. 

Arks stared down at his shaking hands, finding them more interesting. Then he made eye contact with Fido, lips parting a slight bit. Arks let out an airy sound, similar to one of a frightened child, and then he took a step forward, knees wobbling. Arks fell forward into Fido's chest, muscles slaking, blacking out. 

* * *

  
  


Commander Wolffe stepped into the command deck, crossing over to his General’s side. Wolffe stood in parade rest next to Jedi Master Plo Koon, staring into the endless blue hyperspace in front of them. Wolffe’s helmet was tucked underneath him as stood shoulder-to-shoulder with the taller man, waiting for any orders that the Jedi had for him. The Jedi at the moment seemed calm, seemingly content just having the Commander’s presence, and he didn’t find a need to give him any orders.

Within the month Wolffe had been with his General, he had come to the realization that he was thankful that he ended up with such a kind Jedi. He had heard stories from the other Commanders within the GAR that had Jedi that were cold after the ‘honeymoon’ stage was over. Wolffe put a very distinctive distance between himself and his Jedi, not about to cross the line of being professional or personal. He had already done that once with a man that had authority over him and he died on Geonosis’ sands. His brothers had done the opposite and had gotten close with their Jedi, but Wolffe wasn’t going to discourage them because he knew they needed someone that cared about them rather than each other.

Wolffe had known that Jango’s ethics and morals weren’t always sound, but he hadn’t expected him to be with the Separatists. It kind of stung even thinking about it now. Wolffe tried to defend his trainer in his mind which was a constant battle. Some days he would say Jango was practically his father and other days he would hate the dead man. It was a love-hate relationship between him and the deceased bounty hunter. 

Then Wolffe remembered Arks, the little clone that had spied on them during training. Thorn had constantly called him “Wolffe’s shadow” and Wolffe never bothered to disagree. Wolffe smiled to himself at the memories of his little brother. Arks’ brash personality reminded the Commander of himself, but then he remembered his last year on Kamino. Arks suddenly was closed off and barely spoke a word. Then Wolffe found out the truth and he had been livid, but he couldn’t do anything about it. He missed the other clone much more than he would’ve liked to admit and he wished that he had promised to protect him, 

but had he truly failed in that regard. He heard whispers that Arks was sent to the 403rd with General Krell and that Krell was a nasty excuse for a Jedi. He just wished he could rip Arks away from him and protect him in the Wolfpack forever.

“Commander, are you alright?” A voice that came through a mask pulled Wolffe from his memories. The trooper realized that he had started to grip his own arms tightly.

Wolffe glanced up. “Yes sir, why do you ask?”

Plo turned his torso to look at him better. “I felt your anger through the Force. I was just making sure everything was okay.”

Wolffe forgot that the Jedi could sense their emotions and the private trooper wasn’t too fond of that aspect of the Force. “Yes, everything is fine. I was just thinking about something.”

Plo crossed his arms and hummed, “Is there anything I can do to ease your mind?”

Wolffe hesitated for a moment, thinking about the battalion. Wolffe had a decent amount of medics but none of them had a strong reputation like Arks had had on Kamino. Maybe since Plo seemed to like him, he could pull a few strings.

“There might be something, but I don’t know if you’d be willing to do it.” Wolffe stared at Plo openly.

“What is it?” Plo asked curiously.

“There is this young trooper that I knew back on Kamino, his name is Arks, and he's a medic. He is a respected medic in the GAR and I feel he would be a good fit for the 104th. We have medics, yes, but Arks has this natural way of adapting to certain situations and he was the best in his class of medics. The medics here will do well following in his footsteps. They need someone that can correct them and someone they can learn from. Would it be possible to get a transfer request?”

Plo mulled it over for a minute before the corner of his mask pulled up a small bit, the only way Wolffe would know he was smiling. “I believe you are right, Wolffe. I trust your judgment and I will get him transferred as soon as possible. And you are free to leave whenever; I don’t need you to fulfill any duties at the moment.”

Wolffe nodded, holding back a grin. Wolffe turned and was about to start walking away when a clawed hand gently dropped onto his shoulder. Wolffe turned back to face his General.

“One last question, Wolffe,” Plo started. "Is this also a personal matter for you?”

Wolffe froze, the question making him wonder if he should lie to his general. Plo could feel the conflict in the young man and gripped his shoulder gently. “You won’t be in trouble if it is. I just need to know for my own state of mind.”

Wolffe nodded, still slightly anxious. “Yes. He’s my little brother and I just need him to be safe.”

Plo nodded and let Wolffe leave and return to the bunk room. As the Commander walked out of the room, Plo Koon sighed sadly, feeling conflicting emotions flowing through his body and the Force. He wondered if it was such a bad thing to break the Jedi Code.

…

The transfer didn’t take long at all. Plo finalized the transfer and submitted it to the GAR, waiting for confirmation of the request. Two weeks after the request was filled out, Plo received word that Arks would be transferred immediately. Plo found out that Arks was indeed with the 403rd, which was Master Krell’s battalion. He had mentioned it to Wolffe and noticed how he tensed at the mention of the Besalisk Jedi, but Plo never asked about it again.

Wolffe waited patiently in the hanger bay with his General by his side. The hanger bay was relatively empty, save for a few clones working hard on repairing the LAATs from their last mission, but none of them were going to question what their Commander and General were doing just standing there like statues. Wolffe was slightly nervous, not knowing if Arks would want to be in the 104th or near him.

A lot of things could’ve changed while Wolffe was off of Kamino.

“Easy, Wolffe. I’m sure he’ll be happy to see you.” Plo pressed lightly against Wolffe’s back in a comforting manner. As much as Wolffe hated to admit it, within the past two weeks he had let Plo push their boundaries the smallest bit.

“I know, but still I don’t want to make him uncomfortable," Wolffe muttered, making Plo chuckle. Wolffe glared heatlessly at him. “It’s not funny.”

“I’m not laughing at your predicament, I’m laughing at the tone of your voice,” Plo chuckled again.

“Are you saying I’m whining?” Wolffe asked, willing to play along to distract himself.

Plo smiled at the Commander. “I wouldn’t say whining, I would say pouting would fit better.”

Wolffe grumbled under his breath, “That sounds worse.”

Plo laughed, and then put his hand on Wolffe's back and rubbed in small circles as he tensed once the sound of a LAAT entering the hanger bay silenced him. Wolffe fidgeted, waiting for the LAAT to fully land and open. The door slid open to reveal an anxious-looking Arks. The medic’s eyes fell onto Wolffe, purposely ignoring the Jedi, and he let his tense muscles relax. They both quickly rushed towards each other and Arks threw himself into Wolffe’s arms. Wolffe automatically encircled him with his arms, and whispered in his ear, “I’ve got you.”

Arks clung to him tightly, burying his face in the space between the older clone’s neck and shoulder. He was shaking in relief, knowing he was finally safe from Krell’s clutches. He pulled back and started to rapidly sign to Wolffe, surprising his brother. Arks' emotions made him forget that he had never signed to anyone else other than a few brothers from his battalion.

“ _ I didn’t know what was going on. They-” _

Wolffe chuckled, confused, and gently grabbed Arks’ hands. “Since when do you know sign language?”

Arks chuckled lightly as well, pulling his hands away and signing much slower,  _ “A brother taught it to me in the 403rd.” _

Wolffe nodded and knew there was a specific reason why he wasn't using words but ignored it for now. He was lucky Jango had deemed sign language as something important to learn and taught it to the Commander trainees. “Wait, did you know you were being transferred?”

Arks shook his head sadly. “ _ No, Krell looked pissed and told me to get on the LAAT. I thought he was sending me back to Kamino.” _

Wolffe quickly brought Arks into another hug which Arks definitely needed at the moment. Arks sighed happily into his brother's shoulder, seeing his brother’s General approach them. Arks pulled away and Wolffe did the same. 

Wolffe noticed how the Jedi didn’t get too close to Arks and he silently thanked him for it. Plo’s tone was gentle as he spoke, “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Arks. I’m Jedi Master Plo Koon, and I am the General of the 104th. Take your time settling in. I am glad you and Wolffe are reunited.”

Arks smiled at 'his' General, nodding. "Thank you, sir." His voice was light as he spoke.

Plo Koon smiled once more before gesturing to the double doors leading the main hallway out of the hangar bay with a wave of his right hand. "Wolffe can show you to the Alpha company's Barracks."

"Yessir," Wolffe said while Arks gave a curt nod at the same time. Once their General was gone, Arks looked to Wolffe and smiled at him. 

_ "Okay, show the way,"  _ Arks signed happily. Wolffe smiled back and nodded. 

"This way." And led him towards the doors. 

… 

Wolffe led him to the barracks, hearing his brothers talking loudly in the room. Wolffe rolled his eyes in good nature and pressed in the entry code, making sure Arks could see it. They entered the room and chaos was the only word they could use. Clones were scattered around the room in various positions and locations, shouting, wrestling, and among other things. Thankfully none of the couples were making out, at least not yet.

The shouting died down slightly once the troopers realized that their Commander was in the room. One of the clones with two red streaks in his hair greeted him cheerfully, “Commander! Come to join us?”

Wolffe smirked, “No not tonight, I’ve got a rookie to show around.” Wolffe took a step to the side to show Arks to their other brothers. The others went silent, expecting a small, teenaged clone but they were surprised when it was an older shiny.

Arks gave a small little wave with a shy smile and then signed, “ _ It’s nice to meet all of you. _ ”

Everyone frowned and looked to Wolffe, hoping he would be able to help them out. Wolffe smiled, “He said it’s nice to meet you idiots.”

One of the clones, slightly younger than Arks and with silver hair, scoffed, “We know you took creative liberty with that translation because we are as polite as royals.”

Wolffe muttered under his breath but still loud enough for everyone to hear. “Yeah, royal pains in my ass, Sinker.”

Everyone chuckled and even Arks chuckled. 

“Well, it’s nice to meet you too….” Another trooper said but trailed off, not knowing Arks’ name.

“Arks,” Wolffe filled in for him.

“Well, Commander, we know it’s been a long day for you so why don’t you let us show him around.” Sinker gently grabbed Arks’ hand and started to lead him around their barracks with multiple others following. Arks shot a look over his shoulder at Wolffe, feeling a little bit lost.

Wolffe watched him go with a small smile and gave a shooing motion with his hand to silently encourage him to go. Once they were gone, Wolffe collapsed on one of their couches. Someone chuckled and Wolffe glared at them, “Shut the hell up, Sparks. I’m not in the mood for your teasing.”

Sparks chuckled and shook his head. “No teasing about you being tired. But I just never thought I would’ve seen the day the big bad wolf proved he had a heart.”

Wolffe groaned. “Fuck you.” Both of them chuckled lightly.

… 

Arks heard his own harsh, panicked breathing hissing within his helmet as he dashed across the metal floor towards an escape pod. Everything's gone to complete shit. One second he was in the barracks, and the next he was running for his life to at least make it to the escape pods in time before they left him on the ship to die. 

Arks smiled tensely under his helmet when he made it safe and sound, or not so safe yet, but he made it all the same. Arks hurriedly sat down in a seat across from Sinker and Boost. He didn't feel so giddy to wave to them anymore like other times. He could see the similar body languages of fear on them, from their shaky gloved hands to their tilting helmets towards one another. Arks saw Boost’s hand jerk like he wanted to put a hand on Sinker’s shoulder in comfort but he never completed the movement. Within the time Arks had become mute, he noticed other little things not many others did. 

It all became a blur after that. Arks remembered General Plo Koon and Commander Wolffe dashing onto the escape pod. And he barely remembered General Koon launching their pod out of their star destroyer, along with three other pods, and then...they all watched as the Malevolence exploded, becoming a fiery ball of a raging fire in the middle of dead space. 

Arks raised a shaky hand to his helmet's visor and stared at the window.  _ No. No.  _ He briefly glanced over at Wolffe, who looked at him, and then Arks looked over to his General.  _ It's all gone. Everything.  _

Wolffe sank into the seat beside Arks and hesitantly brought him into a side hug. Arks hardly leaned into it, he was so shocked. Wolffe kept his arm around him as he turned his attention back to their general. Arks stared at the floor, the warmth from Wolffe never reaching him. Arks felt like crying, like screaming, to show his anger and pain, but he kept his mouth shut. There was no sound. He remained silent. And mute.

* * *

  
  


Comet was silent at the end of Arks’ story, staring at his hands which were tangled together on Blitz’s chest. Arks was looking down at the floor, emotions flickering in his golden depths. Wolffe tangled his fingers in Arks’ hair gently, making Arks glance up at him. Wolffe smiled sadly at him, not taking his hand out of his hair.

Everyone froze when they heard a small sniffle coming from the teenager. Comet had buried his face in Blitz’s chest, silently crying. Comet sat up, wiping his tears away.

“Pup, you okay?” Wolffe asked concernedly. Comet nodded then sadly looked at Arks. The medic stared sadly at him, not able to sign anything because nothing can take the pain away from either of them.

Arks lifted an arm up in the air, giving Comet an invention to hug him. Comet had been waiting for Arks to give him the okay and the teenager curled under his arm. Comet buried his face in his brother’s shoulder.

“I don’t know why  _ I’m _ crying when you went through the trauma, sorry,” Comet mumbled an apology, nuzzling Arks’ neck. 

“ _ I told you it was sad, Comet. It’s okay to be upset.”  _ Arks reassured his baby brother, tilting Comet’s chin up.

“But still Arks. You were….” Comet couldn’t help but start crying again, feeling horrible for his brother. Arks had been sexually harassed and abused and on top of that, he was a child when it happened. 

Arks and Wolffe shared a sad look, and Wolffe knew Arks was reliving the trauma of both Trent and the trainers and Krell. Wolffe would most likely have to talk with Arks later and calm him down but the medic was preoccupied with the teenager in his arms.

Eventually, Comet calmed down enough to stop crying but he didn’t move out of Arks’ arms. The medic glanced down at the teenager and signed with one hand.  _ “You okay now?” _

Comet nodded, rubbing the tears away with the back of his hand, “Yeah, sorry for crying so much.”

Arks shook his head firmly.  _ “Don’t apologize for crying. You’re safe to cry with us.” _

Comet nodded a small bit understandingly. Comet yanked Wolffe towards him. Wolffe went with an eye roll but still curled protectively around the teenager. Sinker and Boost soon joined the pile with Blitz not too far behind.

Ace stayed where he was, grumbling, “Nope, I’m not going to give a battalion the chance to blackmail me with a puppy pile again.”

Comet rolled his eyes. “Oh shut the hell up, Ace. Ghost and Torrent have puppy piles almost weekly. Suffer and come cuddle me….please.” Towards the end, Comet gave him his infamous puppy eyes. They must’ve worked because Ace dragged himself over and covered Comet’s front. Comet happily nuzzled closer to him.

“Fuckin’ puppies and their fuckin’ persuasive ways.” Ace mumbled but smiled when Comet cuddled him. 

Arks was tense in his whole body but Wolffe’s comforting hand running through his locks was doing nothing. Arks felt a gentle nudge in the back of his mind and his thought immediately went to their General.

Arks smiled lightly and the comforting gesture from Plo, who was trying to help Arks relax through Force suggestions.  _ Thank you, Buir _ . Arks silently thanked his father and he finally let his muscles relax. He was finally safe. 

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There you have it! That's Arks' story! While Krell did damage his voice Bumblebee style, Arks still had the ability to speak, it would just cause him pain if he talked a lot. But Arks never planned on speaking much after Kamino, so there wasn't too much damage except mental damage. 
> 
> I hoped you guys liked this! I have been planning this chapter for sooooo long, and I'm very proud of it! 💙
> 
> Beta reader/Editor-AngelWars (Ao3)
> 
> What did you think?


	44. Chapter 44-Fractured Chaos and a Change of Heart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which something happens and Tup rethinks some things.

Tup blocked a punch before dodging another that was aimed for his ribs. 

“Widen your stance, Tup!” his Captain’s voice rang out through the room.

Tup blindly waved him off. "Yeah, okay, fine fine.” The teenager continued on with his sparring partner who smirked lightly at him and Tup had a guess of why.

Tup spun into a roundhouse kick, landing the kick but didn’t knock his brother down as he had planned. Tup winced as a foot collided with the left side of his ribcage. An uncomfortable feeling spread through his chest. He dropped to one knee, before rolling out of the way of his brother.

“Your left side was open, fix it!” Fives yelled this time and Tup groaned while his sparring partner chuckled once again, struggling to not laugh out loud. The brother momentarily went easy on Tup so the teenager could respond to his  _ buirs _ .

_ “Okay! _ I get it!” The teenager’s voice was strained; he was getting really annoyed. Tup threw erratic multiple punches that sometimes missed their mark and Tup was getting frustrated with his father-figures. Fives and Rex, in Tup’s opinion, always held him to a higher standard than others. It pissed Tup off sometimes because they were so critical of what he did, but Tup still loved them. But this time it was different; Tup was honestly thinking that he preferred Rex and Fives to just leave him alone and not acknowledge him.

Tup raised his mental defenses and dashed forward, ready to use his skillful speed and agility to his advantage. His brother smirked and dodged one of his sidekicks to the backside, but then Tup did a second roundhouse kick and caught his brother in the jaw.  _ Yes!  _ Tup internally celebrated, but Fives and Rex didn't do the same though. 

"That was sloppy!" Fives groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose. Tup looked at him in disbelief.  _ Are you joking?  _

"Tup! You missed your first attempt to hit him and he gave you a chance to catch him again. But imagine if that had been a droid! It wouldn't have been so easy to catch off guard with that second kick. It would've been up in seconds and would've shot you dead!" Rex yelled, frowning at the younger. 

"Yeah," Fives added, shaking his head. "We can't have you dead, now can we?" Tup turned red with anger and was about to argue back when suddenly he felt a hard force smack him in the chest, hard. He was temporarily winded. Tup's back hit the mats and he was down for the count.

_ "And _ now you're dead!" Fives rolled his eyes in annoyance. 

Rex raised his arms up in exasperation. 

Tup shook with fiery, poisonous anger. The brother who tackled him stood up and offered a helping hand, apologizing quietly, but Tup swatted his hand away and got up to his feet angrily. 

Fives started, "Hey! Now that's not-"

"Are you kidding me?!" Tup shouted, clenching his jaw. "Are you actually kidding me right now? I would've had him had you not distracted me constantly!"

"Well Tup, sorry to say this, but you shouldn't have gotten distracted in the first place." Rex clicked his teeth four times, shaking his head. 

Tup glared at him. "Excuse me? I shouldn't constantly have back seat bystanders while I am trying to focus!"

Rex and Fives both did a backtrack in their minds.  _ Did he just…get smart with us?  _ They both wondered silently. 

"Tup, during war, you must-" Rex was interrupted by Tup, who said, "Yeah, yeah! I need to remain focused during a battle and not get distracted or I'll get _shot_ and _killed_ or _blown sky-high_ or _drowned_ or _stomped on by an AT-AT_ _walker._ And you know what? It sounds like there's a lot of kriffing things that will kill just _me."_ Tup clenched his fists by his side. 

"Okay, see, now you need to be quiet, kid. Right now you are being very disrespectful," Fives warned, staring at him. 

Tup turned red with anger. "And why should I be quiet? You two have been distracting me all day, especially during sparring, and I have every right to be pissed off at you."

"Actually, you don't. This is a simple lesson for you, you need to focus better on what you are doing and not on what we are doing, alright?" Rex shut the argument down quickly and turned his back, walking away. However, Fives wasn't done. 

"No No. The kid needs to know that he's being really fucking disrespectful right now, Rex. He's got a mouth on him today and I ain't liking it." Fives looked from Rex back to Tup with a stony expression. 

_ "Ohhhhh~ _ yeah, that's rich coming from you," Tup snarled back. "I've got the mouth on me but y'all were the ones yelling at me from the sidelines." Tup raised his hands and waved them around in the air. "You know what? I'd like for you two to stop butting into  _ my life  _ or into what I am doing when it's important to me!"

Fives crossed his arms over his chest and stepped a bit closer. "You better hold your tongue. I ain't asking twice."

Rex stepped forward and looked between the two. "Alright, stop it. Fives. Tup, stop."

"What are you gonna do, Fives? Hit me?" Tup asked rhetorically, harshly.

Fives was taken back by the question, who took a labored step back, staring wide-eyed at the teenager. The question peeved Rex. 

"Tup?! Apologize, now!" Rex snapped, glaring at the teenager. 

"No," Tup answered stiffly, squinting up at Fives. "I want to know what he's going to do if I don't stop. Why don't I ask you what you're gonna do if you don't stop interrupting me and distracting me while I am sparring?" Tup leaned forward, tilting his head to the side, right ear to Fives. "Huh? What's that? Ohh, you aren't gonna stop? Well, that's just too bad, now isn't it?" Tup cocked his chin up challengingly. 

Fives snapped. He closed the distance between them and grabbed Tup by the arm and yanked him up towards him. "I've had enough with you and your di-" A resounding crack sound echoed throughout the room. Rex stared in shock, glued to the floor where he stood. Jesse, Kix, Hardcase, Echo, and everyone else stared at the couple and their kid in equal amounts of shock. 

Fives' head was snapped to the side. His hand had come up to cup his face. A red and purple bruise already forming there where he had been hit. 

Tup heaved seethingly, teeth clenched, glaring knives at Fives. Right hand out as a fist. His eyes widened once he realized he had moved and what he had done, and he gasped, yanking his hand back to his chest as if he had been burned. Fives slowly looked up at him and took a step back. His nose was bleeding.  _ Oh my god. What have I done?  _ Tup thought in distraught. 

Rex closed the distance between himself and his boyfriend and kid and placed himself in between them. 

Tup stepped back a little and watched in horror as Rex checked Fives over. 

"Are you alright? Dammit, your nose is bleeding," Rex gasped, cupping a hand under Fives' bloody nose. 

Fives moved his head forward, grunting, "Yeah, yeah I'm fine."

"No you aren't," Rex snapped immediately. 

Fives shrugged. "It's just a nosebleed, Rex. Calm down."

"I'm not calming down!" Rex grunted louder, straightening up like a rod. "Kix, take care of Fives for me."

Tup tensed up.  _ Oh no.  _

Rex slowly turned around to face him and calmly said, "Mat. Now." Rex walked past him, giving him the cold shoulder. 

Tup was shooketh.  _ Oh no. No. No.  _ His golden eyes dropped sadly as he watched the head medic scramble over and help Fives walk away over to the nearest wall. Kix made eye contact with Tup and Tup looked away in shame. 

He turned to face Rex and unclenched his hands. "R-Rex-"

"Tup. On. The. Mat," Rex repeated himself with emphasis. He wasn't joking around. Tup trembled. 

"You think you're all tough and can just hit people whenever you feel like it, fine. This is what happens when you do that, Tup." Rex circled the mat, looking at him. 

"It… it was an accident. I didn't mean it!" Tup tried to reason with him, to get out of this predicament. He didn't want to spar with Rex. That was the last thing he wanted to do. 

"You can't do something that you don't mean to do, Tup. Not as a soldier. That can get you killed. Now I'll have to punish you since you want to open your mouth, disrespect Fives and I, embarrass yourself and us in front of everyone, and you want to tell us we can't tell you what to do?" Rex got tired of waiting and growled, "Get your ass over here right now or so help me I'll drag you out onto this mat myself!" 

Tup flinched at the tone of voice. He had never heard Rex talk like that before. It sounded too much like Wolffe at that moment. Fives and everyone else watched silently, watching the kid tremble, sheepishly staring at the edge of the mat with sad puppy eyes. 

Rex cracked his fists and neck and took a step. Tup stepped back. "Okay okay!" He gulped, not wanting to get dragged onto the mat. That would be very embarrassing. More embarrassing than the embarrassment he already felt. Tup reluctantly stepped onto the mat in front of Rex and trembled.

Rex raised his two fists and stared hard at Tup emotionlessly. Tup mirrored his body language and pushed back his tears.  _ This is what I get for opening my mouth,  _ Tup whimpered internally. 

Rex started to circle. Tup followed going around. This was how ARCs and Alpha Commanders fought. Tup and the others learned the formation every so often, trying to perfect it. It was hard though. They continued in a circle and while they did Tup realized what Rex was trying to do; he was trying to scare him, and it was working. Tup was terrified and everyone could see it. 

Kix was keeping an eye on the punishment while helping Fives because for some reason Kix felt like Rex was going to hurt Tup.

Tup blinked and Rex was already starting his attack. Tup dodged and didn’t hit him. He didn’t want to hit his father figure. Because this wasn't sparring anymore; Rex was about to beat Tup’s ass and hurt him to punish him. Tup took multiple steps back to the point where he was at the edge of the mat.

“Rex, please,” Tup pleaded with his  _ buir, _ holding his hands out slightly. His hands shook as he pleaded with his Captain.

“No, Tup. This is your punishment, so if you know what’s best for you, take it and stop acting like a fucking child!” Rex shouted, making Tup jump. It hurt; he was a child compared to them, and apparently, that didn’t matter anymore. Tup was always the baby and it felt...wrong, almost like that title might not be his anymore. Correction; it fucking hurt Tup down to the core.

The other clones in the room gasped. The main battalion troopers had never seen Rex act like this to Tup before. They felt bad for the kid but at the same time, they understood where Rex was coming from. If they were in Rex’s place, they would've done the same thing. If they were in Tup’s place they would be scared to all hells and would want their brothers to help them in any way they could.

Torrent, however, didn’t seem to share the same sentiment besides Kix. They looked pissed just like Rex. Echo was glaring at the teenager along with Fives and Hardcase. Jesse seemed a little calmer but Kix looked downright worried.

One of the older sharpshooters that were not in Torrent took a small step forward but then realized he would get his ass beat as well. A hand grabbed his hand and yanked him back. He met eyes with another trooper who firmly shook his head. “Don’t, or Rex will kill you,” He warned in a hushed tone.

Rex landed a kick to Tup’s side who collapsed to the ground in a heap. Tup rolled out of the way before bouncing back on his feet and dodged another punch. He was trying to avoid hitting Rex but he was going to have to hit him sooner or later. Tup found the opportunity to grapple Rex’s torso and then he managed to knock his knees out to make the Captain buckle. The others weren’t surprised by that move; Tup, even for a kid, was a good fighter, but that didn't mean he could beat Rex when the Captain was going full force.

Rex went down with a grunt as Tup was on top of him, pinning his shoulders down. Tup typically would've punched his sparring partner but he couldn’t, not to Rex and not after he punched Fives. And Rex took that opening as Tup hesitated and flipped them so Tup was on the mat. Tup struggled underneath him, feeling like Rex was going to break his wrist because he was grabbing them a bit roughly. Tup was mostly pissed off but also felt so defeated that Rex hated him. He let out a whimper when Rex gripped him tighter and then Tup struggled hard to get away, causing Rex's hand to slip and get caught all in Tup's loosening strands, yanking them out of their usual up kept bun. 

Tup yelped in pain and grimaced in discomfort, struggling more because Rex was yanking on his hair. Rex didn't mean to though, but Tup didn't know that of course.

“Tup, stop struggling or I’ll hurt you," Rex heard the whimper and a surge of protectiveness overtake him. He could feel Tup shaking under him and he swallowed the guilt he felt. _He needs to be punished,_ Rex thought. And it was very true. Rex wasn't punishing him as his _buir_ at this moment, but as his Captain and commanding officer. _I can't feel bad, not now,_ he told himself. _He'll understand later why I had to do this._

__ Tup continued to shift under him, trying to throw his older brother off of him but he couldn’t.

“Tup! Stop! Cut it out!” Rex shouted and heard Tup let out a sound of fear, then Tup froze up and gasped when his hair tightened at the roots. Rex finally untangled his hands-free from the ebony trap, but it caused stinging pain to explode inside of Tup's follicles, and his head throbbed badly. 

Rex let go of Tup once he went boneless. The Captain rocked back on his heels and sternly told Tup, “Do not  _ ever _ disrespect Fives or I like that again or this will happen again and again until you get it into your thick skull.”

Tup stared at the floor the whole time, unable to look at him.

“Look at me when I’m talking to you!” Rex shouted. Tup’s honey eyes snapped up and stared at Rex’s with tears flooding his, but never falling, and his shoulders shook. Rex sighed, feeling bad that Tup was upset, and Rex moved to cup the back of his head. Tup ducked his head in fear and covered it with his hands. Rex's hand stopped midway then settled on Tup’s interlocked hands.

“I had to do it, Tup. You know that," Rex said as his final statement before straightening up. Rex looked to the others and cocked his head to the side before heading for the door. Tup trembled, watching him leave. The others quickly followed Rex out, not wanting to stay in the thick awkward air that had collected in the room since the whole thing started. 

Kix helped Fives out of the room and handed him off to Rex, who waited by the door. Once everyone was out the door closed and Tup was left alone in silence. 

He slowly looked down from the door and towards the mat, breathing slightly hard. As the seconds ticked on by, he mistook the rumbling in his ears to be the ship moving but it was actually his heart beating fast. 

Tup slowly lowered his arms from on top of his head and wrapped his arms around himself nimbly to stay warm because he felt so cold. Then the teenager's eyes closed to small slits, rings crested under his eyelids, and he began to cry. 

His shoulder shook with such ferocity as he cried. The stinging in his hair follicles became a distant memory, but the throbbing chose to stay and remind him of what just happened. 

Tears drip onto the blue mats. Tup stared at the circles of water left there and then he leaned forward and collapsed into a heap, body trembling hard as he cried, feeling bad for himself. He folded his arms in front of his face and curled into himself again, feeling as though he can't get up right now. 

Rex's and Fives' angry eyes floated around in his mind. The look of disappointment on everyone else's eyes swirled, turning into a red storm.  _ Why do they hate me? All of them do. Their faces say so much, and all I saw was…hatred and disgust…disappointment. I never wanted to disappoint them.  _ Tup whimpered at the thought, the realization. It sent daggers straight into his cracking heart. 

The sound of the door opening made all thoughts pause and his crying freeze. Tup tensed up immediately.  _ Did someone come in? Who?  _ Tup slowly looked up when footsteps started towards him, then he stopped halfway, only seeing a pair of blue and white recon boots. The person knelt down and tapped Tup's shoulder, and Tup flinched. 

He slowly looked up and discovered it was Kix who had come to see him.  _ See me? Maybe not so much. Maybe just to get me to leave the room so I can go back to the barracks and wallow in my self-pity. Maybe so then the others can come back here and continue sparring like they were supposed to. I held everything up…I'm so- _

"Tup? Are you okay?" Kix's soft voice filtered in, breaking through the shattering wall of negative thoughts. 

Tup stared at him silently. 

"I'll take that as a no, kiddo," Kix said, shifting so he could kneel in front of Tup. Kix stopped when Tup shifted away from him and he froze. Kix’s heart dropped. “Tup, please don’t be afraid of me.”

Tup balked in his movements and stared into Kix’s heart-broken eyes. He slowly nodded and stopped his shuffling away from his older brother. Kix sat on the ground keeping his movements slow. He saw how Tup completely ducked away from Rex earlier.

Tup started crying once again, unable to hold his sobs back. He felt so much rejection from his older brothers; from every single one of them except for Kix.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Kix asked once Tup got a chance to catch his breath in a break between his cries. Tup shook his head, his teary gaze stuck looking at the wall like it would have the answer as to why his brothers hated him.

“I think we do, kiddo….” Kix waited for Tup to look up at him but he never did. “I know you’re upset and you don’t want to talk about it but I don’t want you to have a relapse with your depression. You’ve been doing better and I don’t want that progress to just disappear.”

Tup glared at him. “You don’t really care about me. You’re just using my depression to get me to talk about what happened. None of you actually care.”

Kix was so shocked at the statement that he visibly moved his upper body back an inch.  _ Well, that’s not good. _ “Tup….what the hell does that mean? You think we don’t love you?” Kix softened his voice so he wouldn't startle the teenager. 

“Fives and Rex surely don’t love me, which means everyone else will follow them. I know how it works with everyone, soon you’ll all hate me enough to get me decommissioned somehow and watch as I get dragged off to Kamino.” Tup’s voice was angry and full of frustration. 

Kix couldn’t hold back anymore. He grabbed Tup and pulled him into a fierce hug. Kix buried his nose on top of Tup’s head, feeling the tremors in Tup’s body. “Do you really believe that? Do you, honestly? We love you, Tup’ika. I love you. I would never let that happen to you. Ever. No one deserves to be decommissioned.”

Tup sagged against his brother’s chest, so utterly defeated. Tears soundlessly dripped onto Kix’s shoulder and Tup wrapped his arms tightly but still loosely around the medic's neck. Kix ran smooth circles over Tup’s shoulder blades, cooing under his breath, “It’s okay, it’s okay. I’ve got you.”

Tup sobs started once again, ripping painfully out of him. He didn’t remember the last time he had cried this hard. He just wanted Fives and Rex to hold him but then he remembered why he was crying in the first place. “I hate them…” Tup whispered, not really meaning to say that out loud but Kix picked up on it immediately. 

“I’m guessing you’re talking about Rex and Fives?” Kix prompted which got him a nod as an answer. “Don’t say that kiddo. I know you’re frustrated with them but you might regret saying that soon.” Tup highly doubted he would regret it but he let it go for now.

Kix drummed his thumb in a comforting rhythm on Tup’s hip, still cooing to Tup when the teenager let tears fall or when he whimpered like a kicked puppy. Eventually, Tup calmed down, feeling very tired, but a thought came to his mind. “Do the others know you’re here?”

Kix shrugged. “I don’t know. Jesse might, but the others might think I am in the medbay or something. But I don’t care about them right now, I only care about you.”

Tup let out a yawn, feeling exhausted but didn’t want to go back to the barracks. Kix looked down and saw Tup’s tired eyes. “You should probably sleep, kid. Come on, let’s go to the barracks.”

Tup froze as Kix helped him stand up. “Please don’t make me go in there.” Tup started hyperventilating in the blink of an eye, fear, and anxiety overtaking his body.

Kix frowned, then realization dawned on him and he settled his hands on Tup’s shoulders. “Hey hey hey, no, shhhhhh. Tup I have to take you back to the barracks or we might get in trouble if an Admiral is snooping around the place; I don’t know if there is, but I don’t want to take the risk.”

Tup shook his head, trying to escape his grasp. Going to the barracks meant he would see the others. And seeing the others would in turn make him panic. And him panicking would cause an anxiety attack and the list went on. Tup’s brain was kicking in high gear.

“Tup, you do not have to talk to them; you don’t even have to look at them. I’ll be right next to you if they start to say anything and I’ll make them shut up,” Kix compromised with the teenager. Tup thought it over, still breathing heavily. He shakily nodded and attached himself to Kix’s hip. Kix smiled gently at him and wrapped an arm around him. 

Kix slowly moved them to the barracks, thankfully not running into anyone in the very open space of the hallways. Once they reached the door, Tup dropped his head to the medic’s shoulder, nuzzling his throat slightly. Kix tightened his grip and opened the door. 

Torrent Company and a few others from the main battalion were scattered around the room (which was much bigger compared to the Rex room on the _Resolute_ seeing that they were on Coruscant) were silent. Rex and Fives were shoulder-to-shoulder on one of the couches, eyes stormy. Kix didn’t look at them as he entered the room with Tup still hanging onto him. 

Fives and Rex looked up when the door opened and they saw the teenager with the medic. Rex stood up crossing his arms over his chest. “Kix-”

Kix pointed a finger at him. “No. Stop talking. Right now.”

Fives jumped up next and Rex continued, “Don’t test me, Kix. I suggest you watch your tone with me, trooper.”

Kix rolled his eyes, not afraid of his Captain’s threat. “Well,  _ sir _ , you seem to have forgotten that I outrank everyone when it comes to medical or concerning situations, and right now I’m pulling rank, so hush it!” Kix felt Tup tremble in his arms, mute.

Rex and Fives were shocked when the medic raised his voice and they looked to Jesse for assistance. Without looking at his husband's stare Jesse responded with his hands up in surrender. “Oh, hell no. Don’t look at me. He said it himself, he’s pulling rank.”

Rex groaned while Fives mumbled under his breath, “You’re useless.”

“Tup-” Rex started in a firm voice but was cut off.

“No, do not talk to him! Fuck off, Rex, and let me take care of him,” Kix snapped back, hand traveling to Tup’s hair when he felt tears hit his blacks. He didn’t give them a chance to respond and walked to their bunk room but not before yelling over his shoulder, “And I’m not done with you two yet!”

Tup started crying once they entered the bunk room. He curled into himself and started to breathe heavily again. He broke away from Kix's hold and walked away from him, clutching his head. 

Kix was glad the bunk room was empty. 

"Tup?" Kix tried to get his attention. 

Tup waved his hands and grunted, not wanting to hear it. The teenager was clearly upset and didn't want to talk right now. He stumbled over to his bunk and plopped down onto it. 

Kix sighed and walked over to lean his back against the far wall. He had a clear view of Tup's bunk and all the other bunks, and the door to the bunk room. 

Tup raised his head and stuffed his face into his pillow. He screamed angrily into it and sobbed. It was quite ugly. 

Kix shook his head in sympathy, feeling bad for the kid. He crossed his arms over his chest and kept his eyes half-open so if Tup snuck away to do something or if something happened right in front of Kix, he would see it and put a stop to it. 

Tup clutched his chest and cried. It was not your normal low cry. It was high pitched and so full of pain and despair. No one died. No one was hurt. No one was  _ dying.  _ It was his goddamn soul that could hold itself together. His soul was cracking under pressure and he didn't know how much more he could take. 

Kix grimaced, not liking the sounds Tup was making. It sounded like he was choking himself.  _ Dammit. Damn it all.  _ Kix pushed off the wall and speed-walked over to the bed before sitting beside the teenager. Tup flinched violently and whined, breathing quickly. 

"Shhh.  _ Udesii, vod'ika _ . You're alright. Shhh. Stop your crying. You're gonna hurt yourself. Might even pass out, ya know." Kix rubbed his back in gentle, swooping circles.

Tup took in a shuddery breath, listening intently to the medical, groaning when his head throbbed terribly. "My head hurts Kix. It hurts." Tup panted, stuffing his face back into the pillow. 

"Ah-ah, don't do that. You can't breathe. Sit up for me, Tup. Please?" Kix asked, rubbing his shoulder in insistently. 

Tup raised his head a bit and sighed, shuddering again. His anxiety-riddled his body, nearing dangerous levels of anxiety. 

The door opened and Kix snapped up, ready to defend Tup and yell at Rex or Fives or both if they even dared step into their space. But it was only Jesse. 

"Kix?" Jesse prompted, walking forward a little, but Kix's eyebrows furrowed at him.

"Not right now Jesse. Please." Kix shook his head, hearing Tup whimper softly. 

"I…I want to help a little. I'm sorry." Jesse turned his head and headed right back for the door again. 

Kix sighed and observed Tup before realizing he would need his husband’s help to calm the teenager down. “Fine, you can help. But I swear on everything, if you upset him more, you’re out.” Kix was firm.

Jesse nodded and sat next to Kix, staring sadly at the teenager. Kix was still stroking his back, not taking his eyes off of the crying trooper. Jesse opened his hand on the bed in an offering manner, not wanting to scare Tup by blindly grabbing his hand. Tup stared at his hand before he gave a high pitched whine, clawing at his chest.

“Tup, no. Hey, don’t do that, you’ll hurt yourself,” Kix warned him in his medic voice. Tup whined again, trying to breathe but only wispy gasps left his lungs. Jesse grabbed his wrists to get them away from his chest but quickly let go when Tup yelped in pain. He curled his hands towards his chest, tears now falling from pain. Kix and Jesse slowly looked at each other. They remembered that Rex had grabbed Tup’s wrists during the spar.

“Oh, please no…” Kix begged, gently taking Tup’s hands and pulling his blacks up his arms. Dark bruises in the shape of hands marked the teenager’s wrist, showing the amount of force Rex had used on his kid. Jesse audibly gasped, hand coming up to cover his mouth. Kix was silently tracing the bruises gently with his thumbs, and his husband knew that was not a good sign.

“I’m going to kill him.” Kix sprung up from his spot and started towards the door but Jesse pulled him back down.

“Don’t Kix. Tup needs us more. You can’t go yell at Fives and Rex, not right now anyway,” Jesse advised the furious medic, gesturing to the teenager that looked like he was about to pass out.

Kix wrapped one arm around Tup, pulling him sideways so he landed against Kix. Tup wheezed as he tried to breathe, hand gripping the sheets. Jesse scooted closer, taking his hands gingerly, rubbing his knuckles. 

Tup cried and cried into Kix’s shoulder until his throat became raw and he still cried some more. He was certain the others could hear him through the closed door and Tup felt just a tiny bit better knowing that some of them would feel guilty and would regret not doing anything. 

“Tup, please try to breathe. I don’t want to give you a downer but I will if you don’t calm down,” Kix pleaded, rocking lightly.

“P-please n-no,” Tup quietly asked him, curling around his arm. If Tup weren’t having an attack right now Kix would’ve found it cute. Kix gave a long sigh and lifted Tup into his lap with minimal effort, letting Tup latch onto him. He kept Tup’s head away from the junction that connected his neck and shoulder so Tup wouldn’t have more trouble trying to breathe.

“I know kiddo, I know,” it was all Kix could say.

Tup went verbally silent other than his cries until he suddenly spoke minutes later, “W-why do t-they have to hate me?” Tup’s question was pitiful to his older brothers. 

Jesse put a hand on Tup’s shoulder, feeling nothing but sympathy for his company’s teenager. Rex and Fives were supposed to be his guardians and not hurt him. But they did in more ways than one. “I know we aren’t your  _ buirs,  _ but we love you. I’m sorry I didn’t stop Rex when I should’ve. It’s my responsibility as your older brother to protect you, even from our own.”

Jesse's words made Tup feel a little better but it did nothing to repair the damage done. The damage would never leave him and Tup would never let it go. Not after this.

“They aren’t my parents anymore,” Tup’s grim statement was firm and eerily soft. He was dead serious about it.

Kix physically felt the cold hands of fear grip his heart. Kix wanted to yell and scream to try and convince Tup that Fives and Rex still loved him but….he didn’t. 

Tup had made his choice. Rex and Fives meant almost nothing to him anymore. At that point, they were just his Captain and some ARC trooper. And no one could change his mind. Kix doubted Comet could even do anything.

Kix swallowed hard and let the topic go. For some odd reason after he finished his last sentence Tup began to calm down, his sobs reduced to silent tears. Kix smoothed out Tup’s hair, running his fingers through it gently.

Soon Tup’s eyes were fluttering closed, fighting sleep. Kix stared intently at the door, hoping Fives and Rex wouldn’t come in but he did want to yell at them later.

“Tup, I’m going into the rec room. Under no circumstances do I want you to leave unless someone is dying. I don’t want you to see me yelling at them. Got it?” Kix lifted Tup’s chin with one finger, meeting eyes. Tup nodded and switched with the troopers, now leaning on Jesse. Kix swiftly got up, sending one last sad look to his husband and little brother before crossing to the keypad on the door. It was time to have a little  _ chat _ with his dumbass ARC brother and Captain.

Kix entered the rec room and stomped over to his Captain and the ARC trooper. He wasn't afraid of them. He was hardly afraid of dying. 

"Alright, I’m going to talk to you both, give you a piece of my mind, and you are going to listen and not talk over me. Do I make myself very clear?" Kix pointed at them, standing just in front of them.

Fives clenched his jaw, obeying just because. Rex glared softly at Kix and sighed, preparing himself to get yelled at. 

"Good. Now." Kix closed his eyes and then they flashed open as he yelled, "What the hell is wrong with you two?! Honestly! Do you have any idea what you've done? Any idea at all?!"

Fives opened his mouth. "Rex punished Tup because he disobeyed. He talked back to his high ranking officers. And he blatantly hit an ARC. What else do you want us to say?"

"You. Have. No. Idea! None at all! You hurt him, badly. You scared him." Kix yelled, glaring knives at them, seething in anger. 

Rex stood up and glared back. "Kix, you don't understand that we  _ had  _ to do what we did or he would've done it again."

"But you didn't have to go that far!" Kix yelled back, feeling angry that he was yelling at the top of his lungs to defend Tup, and he was sure that Tup could hear them in the other room right now. 

Fives rolled his eyes. "Rex may have gone to great lengths, yes, and it may have been a bit much, but you have to get it through his thick skull that he can't do that! What he did was disrespectful! Are you seriously defending him right now?" Fives looked disbelieving. 

"Yes!!" Kix growled at him, getting closer. 

Fives got closer to Kix too. Rex looked at Fives, then at Kix. "Kix, stop it, now."

"No, I won't! I came out here to give you a piece of my mind, and that's exactly what I am going to do." Kix glanced at the others watching and huffed. "Are the rest of you going to just sit there and not tell Rex and Fives they were wrong in the slightest? Kriffing stars, Rex, you dragged him by his hair! His hair!!"

"I did not. My hands got tangled in it because he kept moving! I was trying to untangle my fingers from it, but you can't exactly do that when the other is twisting and turning." Rex crossed his arms over his chest. 

"Psh," Kix scoffed, rolling his eyes. "You didn't need to do that to him."

"Yes, we did!" Fives yelled. 

Echo stepped forward a bit from where he stood behind the couch and mumbles, "You did go a bit too far, Rex."

Rex and Fives both turned around to look at Echo in shock. 

"I could see the fear in his eyes, Rex. Did you not see it?" Echo asks, fidgeting nervously when Fives fixed him with a look of betrayal. 

Kix clicked his teeth and looked at Fives. "Don't look at him like that, Fives. Echo is doing the right thing defending Tup." Kix frowned, eyes cold and emotionless. 

"I did see he was scared, but of course he would be. All kids are like that when getting punished. I would be scared too if someone punished me when I knew I was bad! Wolffe and Ponds and the others punished me all the time if they needed to." Rex justified it, which was true, and it was natural for children to feel afraid of their parents or guardians in a moment of getting punished. 

"I didn't think I would have to repeat myself…but I shouldn't be too surprised," Kix groaned, walking away from them a little. "You hurt him physically, Rex. Dark bruises all over his wrist and I wouldn’t be surprised if there were more. You did that," Kix explained grimly, shaking his head. "Tup…he doesn't trust you two anymore. He is afraid of you."

That made Rex and Fives blink at each other. Rex frowned at Kix confused. “What? How do you know?”

Kix rolled his eyes. “He said it himself, Rex. He said a lot of things to me that he would never tell you because you would dismiss it immediately as him ‘just acting like a teenager that was upset he got punished’.”

Fives put his weight to one side, pressing his lips together. “What else did he say?”

Kix stared at the ground, wondering if he should tell Rex and Fives what Tup said or be vague with it so he didn’t betray Tup’s trust. Vague it was. “He said some shit that should not be coming out of a child's mouth. He thinks that you two don’t care and I’m thinking the same thing right now.”

Fives glared at him. “What the hell does that mean?!”

Kix threw his arms out to the side. “Think Fives! Use your brain for once today! First, you slammed him against the wall a year ago and that broke his trust immediately. Then, Rex physically hurts him and punishes him unfairly. How long do you think  _ that _ will take for him to trust you two again?”

“Kix, Tup was in the wrong and you know it,” Rex growled.

Kix let out a frustrated sound. “For fuck sakes Rex! Yes, Tup was being snappy but what else do you want him to do?! He is a kid! He was thrown into this when he was sixteen. Sixteen! You were close to twenty, Jesse and I were nineteen, and so were Echo and Fives. He is a baby even though he doesn’t want to admit that!”

Rex and Fives were stunned into silence, Kix wasn’t done yet. He stared at Rex. “Did Ponds or Wolffe or any of your older squadmates leave physical marks on your body purposefully, and not for training or sparring purposes?”

“No,” Rex mumbled.

“Did you stop talking to them after they punished you?”

“No,” Rex said a little louder than last time. 

“Did Ponds ever leave you alone after punishing you?”

“No! What is your point?!” Rex yelled, but Kix held up a hand.

“I still have one more question. Did your anxiety and depression even kick in after your punishment? Did you have an anxiety attack for almost an hour? Did you avoid all physical contact with another person, feel rejected; or better yet, were you even afraid to enter the fucking barracks because you thought you would get yelled at or decommissioned for some reason?”

Rex stared at Kix, eyes wide and arms uncrossing from his chest. Fives had the same look.  _ Serves them right _ , Kix snorted in his mind.

“That’s right, you haven’t. Because you don’t have anxiety or depression in the capacity that Tup does. And you blatantly triggered both of those disorders and didn’t think about the consequences it would cause. I told Jesse to stay in the room because there isn’t a doubt in my mind that Tup might do something stupid if someone wasn’t in there.” Kix’s voice was collected but the anger was there.

The rest of the battalion perked up, terrified at the medic’s statement. Kix sighed deeply, swallowing the urge to scream at Fives and Rex. “We’ve lost too many kids in this damn war and I am not going to let this little one go marching along with the others.”

Rex and Fives heavily sat down on the couch, both of them staring at the floor. Kix felt guilty for both Tup and the couple but he did what he had to do. “You and Fives are adults, you should know better than to hurt your child. Because he is  _ your _ kid. Not Jesse’s, not Echo’s, and he is not mine. But don’t think for a damn second, I won’t hesitate to take him away from you two.”

Fives and Rex’s golden eyes snapped up to Kix’s in fear. Kix crossed his arms, taking a few steps back. “I will go to Cody and get him transferred away from you two. He’s a Marshal Commander and we all know he can transfer someone without hesitation. Tup will be gone in the blink of an eye. And he would be happy to be away from you two. Let that sink in.”

Kix turned his back to them and stalked to the door. Echo and Hardcase jumped up to meet the medic. Kix’s gaze was guarded, dark, and hesitant when they came close to him.

“I’ll stay in here in case they try to come in,” Hardcase whispered to him. Kix nodded in thanks before looking at the other ARC.

“I’m guessing you want to go in?”

Echo nodded and looked at Kix hopefully. Kix didn’t want Tup to be overwhelmed but he knew the stubborn ARC wouldn’t let it go. “Alright come on.”

Kix opened Torrent’s bunk room door and stepped in with Echo in toe. On the bed, Tup was straddling Jesse’s lap, openly crying again. Kix tsked lightly, sitting on the bed with Echo.

Jesse looked lost almost, and if Kix looked close enough there were tears in his eyes. Jesse was shushing Tup soothingly, stroking his back. Tup had laid his head on Jesse’s shoulder so he could still breathe and not have another anxiety attack.

Jesse had a tight grip on him, squeezing his waist, and continued to make eye-contact with Kix. Kix looked at Jesse sadly and then stared down at the blankets, listening to Tup’s soft sobs. Jesse, Kix, and Echo remained silent for 4 minutes straight listening to Tup’s sobs until they abruptly stopped. Tup fidgeted in Jesse’s arms and sat up, staring at him, eyes empty of emotion, hazy with tears. Jesse stared up at him, then glanced over at his husband to see what he would say. Tup slowly wrapped his arms around himself and began to tremble quite hard, so hard in fact, that his body basically vibrated. 

Tup almost felt itchy under his armor like claws were grabbing at his arms and pulled them down behind his back, trapping them. His chest felt so heavy like mallets had been placed directly on them. And his mind felt fuzzy. He felt overwhelmed most of all.

“Stop. Stop. Stop. Stop,” Tup mumbled quietly, whimpering. He let out a soft hiss and cried harder, shaking his head, breathing fast again. “Stop. Stop. Stop! Stop, please, stop. No.”

Jesse didn’t move, only spoke, “Okay, okay. It’s okay, Tup’ika. You’re-”

Tup heard someone speaking to him and he suddenly whined, clapping his hands over his ears, a sort of pained shout tore out of his throat, then he skittered off of Jesse, no longer straddling him, and slammed his back against the footboard of his bunk. A terrified, horrific, and heartbreaking scream tore from Tup’s throat next. Kix, Jesse, and Echo stared and watched, shocked at the horrible sound. Fresh blobs of tears rain down Tup’s cheeks, staining his face. All the pain he was in translated fluidly with the scream.

“STOP!! STOP IT!! Stop! Stop!” Tup shrieked, fearing that he was in danger when he wasn’t. His body went into hyperdrive but it would be quick nonetheless. Just a short spike of panic, his body getting more worked up over thoughts or becoming sensitive to touch than anything else. He kept remembering what he did to Fives, punching him back in the sparring room. He remembered Rex challenging him to spar as punishment, resulting in him yanking on his hair, and Tup remembered the look of disappointment on everyone’s face, even when most of the members of Torrent now were defending him against his guardians. 

Tup grunted in frustration and clawed at his face, kicked at the blankets violently, and screamed even louder, head pounding, heart-throbbing, pain ravishing his body at every single turn like wildfire.

Fives, Rex, and everyone nearby or through the walls on either side of the room could hear the screams of despair. Fives and Rex stood up and tried to approach the door to the bunkroom, but Hardcase immediately got in their way.

“Move Hardcase,” Fives growled, eyeing the door, terrified of what might be happening because of their doing.

“No. Kix and the others can handle it.”

Rex fidgeted, wanting so badly to stop Tup from screaming. “But he-”   
“You two need to stay here and wait.” Hardcase frowned deeply, arms crossing over his chest. There was no moving him, not willingly anyway. Fives and Rex weren’t about to wrestle their brother out of the way to get inside of the room.

Tup had stopped screaming but his sobs were still present. Kix snapped out of his trace and swiftly pulled Tup into the middle of the bed. He pinned Tup’s arms down and intertwined their legs so Tup would stop kicking.

Tup screamed again, his whole body jerking forward with the amount of force he was screaming with, but the scream died off quickly as Tup’s vocal cords were completely shot at that point. Tup leaned his head back on Kix’s chest, his throat exposed as tears rolled down his face.

“Shhhhh, shhh. Tup, you’re going to damage your voice if you keep screaming like that.” Kix didn’t exactly know if that was true but he just wanted the teenager to not scream again.

Tup sobbed, turning into Kix’s chest as much as he could. Kix allowed him to move a small bit but still kept his arms tight around him.

Kix rubbed circles on Tup’s chest, hoping it would help calm him. Jesse scooted a little closer while Echo kept his distance. “I know, kiddo, I know. Shhhhh, shhhhh.”

Tup got one of his arms free and gripped Kix’s forearm to try and ground himself. 

“I-I c-can’t do t-this anymore,” Tup suddenly said, voice raw from his screaming. “I can’t, I can’t, Kix, I can’t! I can’t!”

Kix hid his concern very well from Tup but Jesse and Echo saw fear in the medic. That sentence could mean so many things that they didn’t want to think about.

“Please don’t say that, little one?” Kix asked his brother breathlessly. “I understand that you are upset but I promise things will get better in the morning.”

Tup opened his mouth to speak but Kix continued, “I’m not saying that you have to change your mind on anything, especially on Rex and Fives, but you won’t feel so….helpless.”

Tup shook his head and closed his eyes. Kix hugged his little brother close to him and turned his head sideways. Kix closed his eyes and sighed heavily. Jesse peeked over and felt his heart drop to his stomach. The medic was crying a bit. Small tears trailed down his face as he held Tup and rocked him lightly, but Kix was good at hiding it. That was why he turned his head.

A few minutes passed, Tup’s full mental breakdown ended up on a dull note. He huffed quietly against Kix’s neck and started to fall asleep, drained of every drop of energy he had left. Kix hadn’t stopped rocking him, trapped in a limbo between keeping Tup calm and trying to keep himself calm as well. Jesse was half asleep, keeping one eye open on his protective husband. And Echo was sitting on the floor with his back to the bed frame. 

Everyone was completely silent.

Tup was so out of it and numb that he didn’t notice Kix’s heartbeat sped up because of his suppressed crying. Kix didn’t stop rocking, still keeping his head turned away. Echo was watching the door; he honestly wanted Fives and Rex to come in to see how they broke the teenager, but that would make Tup spiral again. Jesse was about to fall asleep right then and there but he heard a small sniffle that didn’t come from his little brother. Jesse peeked through one open eye and saw Kix’s grip tighten on their baby brother.

“Kix?” Jesse scooted off of the headboard towards his husband.

Kix shook his head, not looking at Jesse. Tup shifted in his arms, frowning in his light sleep. Jesse stroked the teenager’s head, cooing under his breath, “Shhhh, you’re okay. We’ve got you.” Tup was soothed back into sleep by his brother and curled further into Kix’s warm chest. Jesse saw tears drip onto the sheets.  _ Oh, Kix…. _

Jesse sighed lightly, and then he gripped Kix’s chin. He turned the medic’s head slowly towards him and just as he thought, Kix was softly crying. “ _ Cyar’ika…. _ is there anything I can do?” Jesse asked helplessly.

Kix shook his head. “No, not right now.”

Jesse sighed again but loosely hugged Kix’s waist. They stayed like that and it felt wrong almost. They shouldn’t have to be the ones holding Tup as he has a mental breakdown; it was supposed to be Fives and Rex.

Kix suddenly shook Tup’s shoulder gently, pulling him from sleep. Tup blinked his eyes open and then closed them, nuzzling closer to the medic. Kix cupped the back of his head and smiled sadly at him. “Tup, do you want to stay with me and Jesse tonight?”

Tup froze at the question, feeling that he would bother Kix and Jesse and he had already pissed off one couple today. Kix didn’t comment, just finger combing his hair and not pressuring him to answer. 

“I wanna stay with you,” Tup muttered to the medic, leaning into Kix’s hand. Jesse smiled, lifting Tup off of his husband and into his arms. Tup yelped and giggled the smallest bit. The three older troopers shared a soft grin, knowing they had made some progress. Jesse carried the teenager to his and Kix’s bunk with the other trooper following close behind. Echo retreated to his own bunk but still kept his eyes on the door.

Jesse gently dropped Tup onto the bunk and let Kix climb in first after he took off his bottom armor. It didn’t take too long because they had already taken off their top half of armor earlier. Tup immediately took cover in Kix’s chest, hugging the medic’s waist. Kix pressed a light kiss to Tup’s head and felt Jesse climb into the bunk. Jesse covered Tup’s other side, hugging his waist. The two older clones having enclosed Tup in a safety bubble. 

Kix drew random shapes on Tup’s spine the best he could given the trio's position, praying Tup would fall asleep and not wake up until morning. Tup soon fell into a deep slumber once again, going lax against both of his brothers and Kix let out a sigh of relief. 

Jesse observed his tired husband and sleeping brother, cocking his head to the side a small bit. “He’s cute when he’s asleep….” Jesse didn’t know what else to say

Kix snorted in amusement. “You’re right, he is adorable, but I just wish he was just as peaceful awake as when he’s asleep.”

Jesse nodded in agreement, nonchalantly lacing their hands. “Do you think he’ll be better tomorrow?”

It was Kix’s turn to sigh, gazing tiredly at Tup. “Maybe. But if he wakes up to an anxiety attack or a nightmare of gods know what, he’ll be done. He wouldn’t be able to function without being jumpy or anxious. And I don’t want to repeat his breakdown again tomorrow.”

Jesse unconnected their hands and lifted Kix’s chin. Jesse leaned in and Kix followed, their lips making contact. They pulled away after a good ten seconds and Kix smirked at Jesse to the best of his ability. “What was that for?”

Jesse stared sadly at him. “You needed it. You’re stressed as hell.”

“Damn right,” Kix grumbled, relaxing his head on his pillow, Jesse followed suit. Kix went into a deep sleep within five minutes. Jesse pulled the covers up even more to the point where Tup was barely visible; he had a feeling Fives and Rex would try and do something when they entered the bunk room if Hardcase would even let them. Jesse wanted to stay up and keep an eye on his husband and the little one, but he lost his battle with exhaustion. 

Twenty minutes later, once Hardcase had full confidence that Tup was asleep, he rolled his eyes and entered the bunk room with Fives and Rex on his heels. Fives was about to break off from the group but Hardcase gripped his bicep painfully tight and tossed him toward his and Rex’s bunk.

“Don’t even  _ think _ about it. You two are not getting near him unless he says so. And right now, you are the last people he wants to see.” Hardcase shot them both a glare before laying in his own bunk.

Fives shot Rex a pained look and Rex sighed. Rex tugged on Fives’ hand, pulling him down onto the bed. Fives immediately latched on to Rex, burying his face in the Captain’s chest. Rex hugged him tightly, wanting to take his pain away but he couldn’t take his eyes off of Kix’s and Jesse’s bunk. Fives started to cry quietly, muffling it into Rex’s chest.

Rex pulled him up by the ribs and pressed his lips to Fives’ forehead. “Shhhh.”

Fives shook his head, squeezing his eyes shut. 

“Why are you crying Fives?” Rex asked, speaking low so the others wouldn’t hear. Rex was concerned about Fives’ crying accidentally waking Tup up. If they woke the kid up, they would surely wake up the medic and the lieutenant as well, pissing off Kix and Jesse who were both on high alert even in their sleep.

Fives growled low angrily and clenched his fists, glaring up at the bottom of the top bunk. “Because he’s upset and it’s our fault! We hurt him, Rex….and we didn’t even see it.” More tears of frustration trailed down his face. Fives wiped them away roughly, making his skin red.

Rex shushed him quickly and held his boyfriend tightly, sighing. The two both glanced over at Tup’s sleeping form glued to Kix’s chest who had a protective arm wrapped around him along with Jesse. 

“We fucked up really bad….” Rex mumbled, closing his eyes. Flashes of fear written on Tup’s face appeared in his mind.

Fives let out a wet exhale that shuddered out of him. His nerves were on fire. “How do we fix this? How do we fix  _ him? _ We completely destroyed him.”

Rex pulled his gaze away and looked Fives in the eye, fear in both their depths. “I-I don’t think we can,  _ Rayshe’a. _ ”

* * *

Jesse draped his towel over his shoulders as he looked at himself in the mirror, dressed in blacks that were skin-tight over his wet skin. The sounds of a shower running sounded in the back of the room, billowing steam up from it, but the sounds faded into the background. Jesse stared at his reflection for a long time, thoughts on his mind. Last night felt like it could’ve stretched on for eternity. 

Tup latched onto whoever was closest to him in the bed throughout the night, which was both Kix and Jesse, so he would switch between the two from time to time. Sometime in the early morning, Tup woke up from flash heat, skin hot to the touch and dry, and Kix had to keep him calm and give him some water so he would stay hydrated. The kid reluctantly went back to sleep after that but it took Kix a long time to get him to go back to sleep. Miraculously, Tup did not have any nightmares.

Jesse smiled to himself, feeling proud and relieved that didn’t happen, because he had no clue what he would’ve done if Tup had woken up screaming, waking everyone else up including Rex and Fives.

The familiar sound of the door opening sounded behind Jesse and he glanced over his shoulder, wondering who it could be to walk up on him deep in thought. Rex entered the ‘fresher and glanced to his left, noticing Jesse’s presence, but Jesse and Rex said nothing to one another. Jesse simply watched out of the corner of his eye as Rex walked over to the metal bench in the middle of the shower room and began to take off his blacks. Jesse turned his gaze away and turned around, swiftly exiting the ‘fresher with the white towel still coming over his shoulders from where it was wrapped snug around the back of his neck. The steam that filled the room briefly rolled out of the room as he left. 

The lights in the rec room were dimmed. No one was in there. Jesse walked up to the door leading to the bunkroom and entered it. It was completely silent inside. Hardcase was asleep, snoring away on the top bunk. Echo was lounging on his bunk, reading an article on his holo-pad about politics. The soft blue glow from the screen made his face glow. Fives’ and Rex’s bunk was empty. And near the back of the room, Kix was kneeling on the floor in front of the bed where Tup was lying. He looked to be talking softly to the teen, but the teen didn’t seem to react at all.  _ Uh oh,  _ Jesse thought, walking a bit faster over to them.

“Hey, mornin’.” Jesse waved at them. His eyes landed on Tup’s eyes and he froze. 

Tup’s eyes, with its usual happiness and soft glow, were dull and lacking any of the happy or gleeful golden glow it always held in them, peeking just over the blanket’s edge. The teenager obviously was curled up under the blankets and tremors rode up to his spine every so often, causing him to shake. He stared straight ahead, unseeing, looking right through Kix.

Jesse looked down at his husband _.  _ “What happened?” He asked. __

Kix sighed and looked over his shoulder. “He’s not responding. Barely got him to look at me.” 

Jesse unwrapped the towel around his neck and placed it on the bed before he kneeled down on the floor too.

“Tup? Sweetie, can you look at us?” Jesse asked softly, placing a hand on the edge of the bed. His thumb stroked it back and forth. 

Tup stared ahead still.

Jesse tried again. “Tup? Please?”

Finally, Tup met eyes with the lieutenant, but still, he didn’t say a single word. He didn’t even make an indication of if he was fine or not with his body. Before Jesse could ask another question or repeat himself, Tup turned over, turning his back to them. He didn’t want to look at them right now. He wanted to avoid looking at his brothers and possibly seeing frozen faces of past disappointment.

Jesse opened his mouth to say something but his lips tightened into a straight line. He sighed quietly, chin tapping against his chest in defeat. 

Kix patted his shoulder and shook his head, a silent message to give up. So, Kix and he stood up and went on with what they were doing before. 

Tup remained where he was. Eyes half-lidded. Back to Jesse, Kix, and the rest of the room. Tup slowly wrapped his arms around his torso and rubbed his arms up and down in an attempt to keep himself calm. The last thing he wanted was for Kix or Jesse to notice he was trembling under the blankets. Tup felt Kix and Jesse switch places, with Jesse getting in the bed with his holo-pad to lay beside Tup on his left, and Kix went to the ‘fresher to take a shower just as Jesse did earlier. 

A bit later, after Kix was gone, Tup turned over onto his right side, not wanting to face Jesse who was in the bed with him. Now his back was to his older brother. The teenager closed his eyes for a second, just a second, a second too long, because when he opened them, Fives had walked into the bunkroom with a towel wrapped around his waist, chest glistening from his morning shower. Their eyes met and Tup trembled, hiding under the blankets like a scared Tooka cat.  _ Oh no, he’s looking at me. No. Go away. Please. Jesse, help. _ Tup turned over under the blankets and hid his face into Jesse’s chest, seeking out his support and warmth.

Jesse’s eyes flicked down to see what Tup was doing, discovering he buried himself under the blankets and curled around his hip, practically attaching himself to him like a needy sloth. Jesse didn’t notice what suddenly brought this on because he hadn’t been paying attention, but when he looked up to look around, he saw why Tup was hiding.

Fives stared at Jesse sadly, but Jesse wasn’t going to feel sympathetic for him, not one bit. The lieutenant glared Fives down hard. Fives felt the heat tingle on the side of his neck. That’s how hard Jesse was staring at him. He was protective over his little brother. Fives turned away from his brother out of shame and kept walking over to his bunk on the other side of the room. Jesse’s eyes followed him, wanting to see where he was going. Once Jesse deemed it okay and that Fives was just going back over to his own bunk, he laid his holo-pad down on his lap and reached out to gently rub Tup’s shoulder.

“Hey, it’s okay. He’s not there anymore,” Jesse cooed in a brotherly manner, bringing his hand up to the side of Tup’s neck to turn his head up so he would look at him.

Tup shivered at the touch and obliged, looking up at his brother quietly.

“He’s gone,” Jesse repeated himself, wanting to make sure that Tup understood he was safe here in the bed away from Fives.

Tup nodded, not saying a word. All he did was tangle his feet up with Jesse’s to feel some kind of solace under the heated blankets, and he whimpered quietly, so quietly, that Jesse barely caught it.

His hand came up to brush away the minuscule tears leaving a trail down Tup’s ashen face.  _ He’s so pale. Poor thing. He hasn’t gotten much light these days. But he’s scared to death, making himself sick,  _ Jesse thought silently, eyes following the tears’ movement until they collected at Tup’s trembling chin and dropped to the navy blue blankets below.

Tup coughed, feeling congested, and groaned.

“You okay?” Jesse asked, stroking his face.  _ Kix, I need you to come back and check out Tup again. Just one last time to make sure he’s okay. _

Tup blinked with his saddened puppy eyes. His silence was louder than words. He was trying to avoid the question, but Jesse wouldn’t allow it to go unanswered.

“Tup, please answer me? Are you okay?” Jesse asked again, feeling Tup shutter beside him.

To be honest, Tup’s heart was pounding behind his rib cage like a symphony of drums playing a thundering battle song. His heart pounded like how it would when he was running across a battlefield, life on the line, scared out of his wits, but here he was lying here, not running, but laying down, and that was a bad thing, and he knew that. 

His stomach twisted up in anxious knots, tying, untying, tying into a tighter knot, then untying with an unfurl motion unfurling, over and over, until it went away completely, but he knew it would be back. And the constant negative thoughts, anxiety-filled, that only haunted every dark corner of his cobwebbed mind but clawed to the forefront after seeing Fives had been pushed back into the darkest corners again. 

He sucked in his tears though even when everything felt so bad. Even when everything sounded so loud in the room and his heart played on its mountainous lull. Even when Tup felt so sick of it all, he lied. The whispers decided for him that he would lie.

Tup put on a fake small smile and mumbled, “...I’m fine.” 

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So...I know some of you are mad...but this was necessary. Kinda. I'm going to go with 'it was necessary' and you'll see why next week. Now shit is going to get real; look out for warnings in the summaries.
> 
> Let me know which part you loved, or hated, or wanted to rip my heart out.
> 
> Beta-reader/Editor-AngelWars (Ao3)
> 
> Any requests? 💙


	45. Chapter 45-Silence (Pt. 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In the aftermath of Tup's punishment, he has gone quiet and has pulled away from his brothers. Kix, being very concerned, brings attention to the fact that Tup is so upset and depressed that he is making himself sick. Torrent hopes Comet will be able to do something to help Tup. However, not before Kix gives Fives and Rex permission to talk to the teenager.

“How’s he doing?”

Jesse and Kix’s tired twin golden eyes snapped up to the person who asked. It couldn’t have been Rex and Fives because they were asleep on a different couch across the room to hear the question. Echo and Hardcase had just entered the rec room, so it had to have been them. Their eyes shot to the door of the bunk room a few times.

Kix dragged a hand down his face, glancing at the closed door from the corner of his eye. “Not great. But he hasn’t had an anxiety attack since last night, so I’m taking that as a small win.”

Echo perched himself on the arm of the couch close to Jesse’s head and nonchalantly put a hand on the back of the lieutenant’s head. “Has he said anything? Like at all?”

Jesse answered this time, leaning into Echo’s warm hand, “Within the past three days I think the kid has only said seven words. He’s just numb, and we can barely get him to look at us.”

Kix lifted his head slightly. “He’s making himself sick; he’s pale, shaky and I can see that he feels horrible inside and out. I’m honestly expecting him to start throwing up because of the amount of anxiety in his body. Tup’s anxiety has finally reached its max and he is down and out. I really hope that he doesn’t do something stupid,” Kix ended grimly, feeling Jesse stroke his shoulder blades.

Hardcase sighed as he settled near Kix’s feet. “Poor kiddo.”

“Yeah, I just hope that he feels better soon, or this might not end well. Not like all the other times. But Jesse and I are trying our best to keep watch over him.” Kix mumbled, leaning against Jesse as he did.

“Let’s hope.” Echo said, offering a smile to the medic. Kix nodded to him in gratefulness and then he closed his eyes, wanting to fall asleep, but his instincts kept fighting him on it like a rough slip of sandpaper that grated at his conscience. Jesse noticed and helped Kix lean back until he rested half of his back on his knees, then Jesse leaned his head back against the headrest cushions and sighed.

“So, what did you two do?” Jesse asked with a smile.

The conversation drifted from there, from one topic to the next. While it continued and bounced about, Rex was eavesdropping subtly. A small frown appeared on his face, then he sat up, waking Fives up in the process. Fives snorted in his sleep when he woke up and he tilted his head up at Rex since he was laying in his lap.

“What’s up?” Fives asked in curiosity.

Rex sighed, brows furrowing. “I keep thinking about Tup. I...I really want to go talk to him.”

“I do too, Rex. But what if Tup doesn’t want to talk to us?” Fives asked, turning over so he laid on his stomach. 

Rex took a deep breath and forced on a smile. “I don’t know honestly. But we should at least try and ask the others if he’d like to listen to us. I don’t think I can keep going knowing Tup is upset. We did that to him and the guilt...it’s eating me up inside, Fives. I just want to apologize.”

Fives’ eyes drooped sympathetically. “Let’s try then.” Fives sat up and swung one leg over the side of the couch. He hopped off of Rex’s body and stood up. Rex followed him to stand, then he fidgeted in place. It wasn’t like Rex to do that so Fives decided to ask for them.

“Hey, guys?” Fives called to get their attention. Everyone looked over at them, similar frowns on their faces. “Rex and I wanted to ask if we could talk to Tup, apologize to him if he’d like to hear us out?”

Kix opened his eyes in a flash and grunted as he got off of Jesse’s body. Jesse squeaked at the sudden movement and bit his lower lip. _ Please don’t yell, Kix,  _ he pleaded internally. Kix stepped forward and crossed his arms over his chest.

“That’s for him to decide so I’ll ask him. Just be prepared to get a no.” And with that, the tired medic turned around and walked over to the bunkroom door, unlocking it before heading inside. He didn’t feel bad at all for saying what he said as a warning. They just need to be prepared for something that most likely will happen and not get upset over it. Kix ambled over to his and Jesse’s bunk and sat on the edge of the bed. Tup flinched and curled into himself.

“Hey, kiddo. I’m sorry for startling you,” Kix spoke, apologizing to the poor kid. Tup stared ahead at the wall, not facing him. Kix took in a deep breath before continuing, “So, Rex and Fives, they want to talk to you. To apologize. What do you say?”

Tup curled one hand up to his chest at his guardians’ names and sighed. It’s been so long since he’d spoken to him, since that terrible day, that he nearly forgot they existed, well, in real life, but in his dreams, his nightmares, they were always there.

“Okay…” Tup answered, slowly pushing himself up to sit.

Kix backed away to give him space and smiled. “Alright. Do you want to go outside and hear what they have to say or do you want them to come in here?”

“In here...please,” Tup immediately responded, looking at the floor, not into Kix’s eyes.

“Got it. I’ll be back.” Kix turned around, stopping when a hand suddenly grabbed his. He turned sideways and looked down at the teenager. Tup’s right hand was tightly wrapped around his, finger interlocking with Kix’s a small bit.

“D-don’t...Don’t leave me alone in here with them...p-please,” Tup begged, trembling slightly.

Kix’s mouth opened, then he nodded. “Of course I won’t. Sit tight.” 

Tup reluctantly let go of Kix’s hand and waited silently while Kix walked out of the room and stood at the door.

“He said yes,” Kix told the two anxious clones. 

Fives and Rex started to walk over, nerves twisted on end, but Kix quickly added, “But I am staying.” through gritted teeth.

Fives nodded in understanding. “Of course.”

Rex and he follow Kix back into the room, anxious to see and talk to the teenager. They hadn’t expected anything less from Kix saying that he will be staying in the room; they have known Kix long enough to know that he is fiercely protective.

Before they reached Kix and Jesse’s bunk, the medic lightly grabbed the captain’s arm. Both the ARC and captain stopped and glanced back at the other clone.

Kix lowered his voice and glanced at Tup before looking at the other two. “Just a warning, Tup hasn’t said much since….that night. If he doesn’t respond, know that he’s listening but he doesn’t want to show an indication that he is.”

“Is-is he going mute?” Fives asked in the same volume as Kix.

Kix shook his head. “I really doubt it. He isn’t talking much but when he does he doesn’t hesitate to talk. He’s just….quiet.”

“Because of us….” Fives whispered sadly. He was surprised when Kix gave him a small sad smile. Kix might not have forgiven them just yet, but he was working on it.

“Is he dissociating?” Rex asked, concerned.

“Are you asking me if he is developing  _ another _ disorder, specifically  D issociative Identity Disorder?” Kix sounded exhausted just thinking about Tup having a  _ fourth _ disorder.

Rex nodded. 

“I don’t know," Kix sighed. "We’ll have to wait and see. Come on.” he gestured for Rex and Fives to go see Tup. 

Kix broke off and went to the other side of the room where Tup could see him if he looked to his right just slightly. Rex and Fives both knelt down to the ground in sync once they reached the bed the kid was now laying back down on. They could tell Tup was curled up under the covers and his dark hair was pulled back into a loose bun; courtesy of Jesse most likely. He looked shaky even from behind and the covers were pulled up to his shoulders.

“Tup?” Rex called lightly. Tup moved a little bit but not much.

“Sweetheart, can you look at us, please? Just for a few minutes?” Fives begged, keeping his voice light, not wanting to have too much hope.

The teenager sighed and looked at the medic, eyes pleading for Kix to tell him what to do. Kix tilted his head towards Fives and Rex, silently telling the teenager to hear them out. Rex and Fives were patient as Tup slowly turned to face them, keeping his eyes downcast.

Fives and Rex wanted to cry at how bad Tup looked. His normally tan skin was pale and he looked clammy. His eyes were dull and held none of his usual happiness, staring at the ground. He looked sick.

“Tup, first off we want to apologize. We were way too overbearing to you and you didn’t deserve it. We just want to make you as strong as possible so we don’t have to bury you six feet deep,” Fives started, slipping his hand into Rex’s. 

Rex squeezed his hand to give him a little bit of strength and took over, “But sometimes we forget that you are a kid and you don’t like to be micro-managed. We should’ve known that our constant criticism would upset you and you would snap at us.”

They saw Tup’s eyes look up for a hot second then flicked back down, but they took that as progress. 

Rex continued, “We handled the situation poorly and you were the one that suffered.”

He sighed and leaned on the bed. If he looked close enough Tup shifted one centimeter closer to him. He was tempted to lift Tup’s chin to look at him but he didn’t want to make him uncomfortable. 

“I  _ never _ should’ve put my hands on you like that. You put your trust in me from the moment we met, not just as your  _ buir _ , but as your Captain, and I have failed you.”

Fives jumped in gently, “And as your ARC, I’m supposed to lead by example and I agitated you.”

Tup shifted a small bit, still listening but staring at the floor. His emotions were conflicting inside of him, half of him wanted to whimper and move away from the two adults and the other half wanted to throw himself into their arms and cry his heart out. 

Rex swallowed hard. Tup and he met eyes for a brief second. “We know what we did was totally wrong, and we are so, so sorry, Tup.”

Fives made an aborted move forward to take Tup's hand in his, but then he remembered Tup probably didn’t want to be touched by the two of them. He pulled his hand back. 

“We want to ask for forgiveness and want to go back to the way things were before, but we know it doesn't work like that,” Fives said. 

The ARC looked to Rex to see if he wanted to say anything but Rex was silently crying, eyes closed. Fives leaned against him and looked at Tup's sad eyes which were slowly filling with tears. “But it’s your decision to forgive us or not. You have that right. You….you don’t have to forgive us if that is what you wish. W-we understand.”

Tup looked at him in shock then averted his gaze, curling up even more. Kix took one step forward, sensing Tup’s discomfort and the other two did as well.

Rex got a hold himself and spoke while still being choked up.  “Fives is right, ki-Tup. You don’t have to forgive us. But...” Rex trailed off, knowing what he was about to say was risky if Tup took it the wrong way so he hoped he chose his words carefully. “Even if we failed you completely and you never trust us or forgive us, you are still our child, forever; even if you don’t share the same feelings. You will always be our precious little one.”

Rex and Fives knew that their conversation with the teenager, who was trying not to cry, was over. The two eldest stood up and walked out of the room back into the rec room. Once the bunk room doors closed, Fives slid his arms from Rex’s chest to his neck and buried his face in the captain’s neck. The ARC felt Rex drop his own head on Fives’ shoulder.

“I’m scared, Rex,” Fives admitted quietly so the others would have to strain to hear them, but he doubted his twin, Jesse, and Hardcase would impose on the conversation.

“Of what, Fiv’ika?” Rex asked, voice rough.

“I’m fine if he doesn’t forgive us, whether entirely or partially, I understand that. But I’m scared he’ll look at me differently now. Differently at  _ us, _ " Fives voiced his grievances. 

Rex held him tighter, pressing against him. He didn’t say anything back.

Back in the bunk room, Kix was sitting on the edge of his bunk, staring sadly at Tup as the teenager cried softly. Tup gripped Kix’s hand tightly, breathing hard so he wouldn’t burst into sobs.

“Tup, what can I do?” Kix asked softly, wanting to ease his baby brother’s pain. 

“Comet,” Tup gasped in between tears. “I-I w-want Comet.”

  
  


* * *

  
  
  


Comet walked into his rec room with a giant grin on his face and a pep in his step. He tossed a few finger guns at everyone as he passed by them. 

"What's up?" Comet greeted Ace. 

Ace stared at him and started to laugh. Blitz laughed with him on the couch. Comet bounced into the 'fresher and disappeared inside. Once he was gone his comrades looked at once another in amused confusion. 

"What the hell just happened?" Boost asked, leaning against the wall. 

Ace gasped for air. "Help. Can't _ breatheeee- _ HAHAHAHA!" 

Blitz clapped his boyfriend on the back and choked. "Oh, my stars!" he laughed. 

Arks stared at the two of them with an empty stare and flashed a few signs at them. They of course didn't see shit. 

"I wonder what he's all happy about," Sinker mumbled, messing with his datapad like a pro-typer.

"The world may never  _ know~"  _ Ace sighs, laying back down across Blitz's lap. 

When Comet exited the 'fresher with a white towel wrapped around his neck and fresh blacks on, he still retained that bounce. 

Boost jumped-scared him and by coming up behind him and asked, "Why the fuck are you happy?"

Comet coughed lightly and blinked at him incredulously. "Is that not allowed?"

Blitz let out this weird-ass sound that turned heads. Ace apologized for that through his hand over his mouth and waved at Boost to continue. 

"Ummm, I mean, yeah. But why are you walking like that?" Boost asked again, just different this time. 

Comet smirked. "Because I'm about to go holo-call my precious boyfriend right now now that we are finished being busy and whatnot!" Comet bowed when Blitz clapped his hands for him. "Thank you, thank you~"

Sinker looked up at the younger clone and chuckled lightly. The doors opened suddenly and Wolffe walked into the room with a confident walk. The serious expression on his face made everyone shut up for a second. Wolffe looked over at Comet and grunted. 

"Comet, come with me. Need to talk to you privately." Without much explanation, Wolffe turned around and walked right back out of the barracks. 

Comet raised an eyebrow. 

_ "Oooooooh~" _ Blitz crooned. 

"Somebody's in _ troubleee~"  _ Ace chuckled. 

Comet flipped them off and quickly walked over to the door, losing his pep-in-step. The doors slid closed with a click and Comet turned to face his commander. 

He took one look at his face and knew something was up. "Sir, what's wrong?" 

"Kix called. He said that Tup wants to see you." Wolffe told him. 

Comet opened his mouth slightly. He chuckled lightly, tilting his head to the side, not completely understanding. "Umm, Wolffe, Tup wanting to see me isn't a bad thing. It's a good thing actually."

Wolffe nodded. "Yeah, but I feel like something's up."

Comet's smile faltered some. "How so?"

"Well…" Wolffe trailed off for a second, thinking about how he should explain. "Kix sounded tense when he comm'd the control deck. I could hear it in his voice."

"But…maybe it's not a bad thing. I sometimes like to think it's good, ya know." Comet shrugged, biting his lower lip. He could possibly text Tup himself and try and get in contact with him prior to him visiting, but what if he doesn't answer? 

"Just be prepared for anything, Comet," Wolffe reminded him professionally. 

Comet nodded curtly. "I understand, sir."

"Good." Wolffe smiled. "Now don't be so tense. Go ahead and enjoy your time with your brothers. We'll be entering the Coruscant system where Tup is soon."

"Okay. Thank you, Wolffe," Comet thanked him. 

Wolffe responded with, "No problem." And then he walked away. 

Comet took a deep breath in and prayed that everything was okay. 

* * *

  
  


A few hours later, the 104th had landed on Coruscant and Comet immediately made his way towards his boyfriend’s barracks once both his general and commander dismissed him. Plo and Wolffe had both reminded him that there was no need to panic and he needed to keep a level head.

With the advice in mind, Comet briskly walked through the halls. Once he was about forty feet away from the barrack doors, Comet noticed an Admiral stalking down the hall. Thankfully it was not Adrian Bates, but Comet didn’t want to see any Admirals at that moment. 

_ Please keep walking, please keep walking, please keep walking,  _ Comet prayed in his head, letting out a breath he didn’t know he was holding when the Admiral walked past him.

Comet rapidly put the pin in for the barracks, not wanting to risk another Admiral seeing him in the hallway. The teenager slipped into the room and saw Torrent turn to look at him. Comet froze at the defeated nature of his brothers. Fives was practically curled up in Rex’s lap. Echo was leaning on Kix’s shoulder, who had his husband stuck to his side. They all looked defeated and unsure of what to do.

“What happened?” Comet recognized the tell-tale signs that something terrible happened earlier. “Where’s Tup?”

Kix's voice was calming when he responded to the teenager. “He’s in the bunk room. Something….happened the other day.” Comet could’ve sworn he heard Fives whimper.

“Well, what was it?” Comet asked, a little impatient.

Kix gave him a look that said 'calm-down-or-I-will-make-you-calm-down.' “We will tell you, but we want you to hear it from him first. We don’t want to twist anything.”

Comet stared at him in shock. “The hell does that mean, Kix?”

Kix dragged a hand down his face, exhausted. “Comet, I swear, I will answer your questions after you see Tup.”

Comet nodded and slowly walked to the door, feeling anxiety and fear pool in his stomach. The room was slightly darkened when he entered and Comet looked at Tup’s bunk but he wasn’t there. Without taking his eyes off of the bunk, Comet now understood how bad the situation was if Tup wasn’t in his own bunk.

He ran his eyes across the room and towards the middle, close to the back was his boyfriend lying in Kix’s and Jesse’s bunk. Tup looked up at him with tired eyes, then his eyes pulled away. Comet swiftly approached the bed and sat down on the edge. Tup started crying softly the second he sat down.

“Love, what’s wrong?” Comet whispered, respecting the quiet nature of the room even though it was just the two of them. 

“I-" Tup started but he couldn’t continue through his tears. He sat up and buried himself in Comet’s front in a matter of seconds. The older boy let Tup latch onto him, head falling on the junction of his shoulder. Comet rocked lightly, stroking Tup’s hair.

“You’re okay, I’ve got you. Just calm down then we’ll talk,” Comet reassured him, cooing in his ear.

Tup cried into his chest, feeling so frustrated that he was crying once again but the flashes of what happened just kept coming back. He whimpered loudly and pressed closer to Comet. 

The Wolfpack boy could tell after ongoing minutes that this was as calm as Tup would get. “Alright, babe, you have to help me understand what happened. Walk me through it.”

Tup panted for breath, but his sobs were slowing down to quiet whimpers. “I-I fucked up.”

Comet frowned, not understanding. “What do you mean?”

“I fucked everything up like I always do.” Tup’s voice was laced with venom aimed at himself but he still sounded heartbroken.

“Love, we will most  _ definitely _ be talking about your self-deprecating words later, but right now, what happened?” Comet’s grip tightened around his boyfriend’s waist. 

Tup pulled back the smallest bit so he could breathe through his explanation. “W-we were training, and F-Fives and R-" Tup broke down into sobs and couldn’t finish Rex’s name.

Comet shushed him, rubbing along Tup’s spine. “So Fives and Rex did something, what was it?”

“They-they kept pointing out things I was doing w-wrong and it was pissing me off. I-I started to get snappy with them. Rex s-said that I needed to learn that I have to stay f-focused but I didn’t want to hear it," Tup explained slowly.

Comet cooed in his ear, “You’re doing so good. Once you’re done talking about it, we never have to talk about it again.”

Tup nodded against his neck and continued, “Rex didn’t want to deal with me at the moment but Fives wasn’t done. And I fucking asked him if he would hit me if I didn’t watch my mouth. Who the fuck says that to their guardian, Com’?” Tup cried harshly into Comet’s shoulder.

Comet was keeping tabs on all the things that were triggering his crying and the list obviously wasn’t done yet.

“Keep going,” He whispered encouragingly. Tup shook his head, unable to say anything. “Baby, I don’t want to force you to talk but I want to help you. You’ve gotta tell me what happened.”

Tup whined but he went on. “I hit Fives.” Comet inhaled but didn’t comment. “I-I didn’t mean to but I-I did. R-Rex made me spar with him. He told me I needed to stop acting like a fucking child and take my punishment. He p-pulled my hair while he pinned me down.”

Comet growled in his throat. Rex had seemed to have forgotten that his child is just that; a  _ kid.  _ “Did he hurt you anywhere else?”

Tup went oddly quiet and started to fidget with the edge of his sleeves. Comet sighed and pulled Tup back from his warm neck. Tup downcasted his golden eyes, not able to look up at his boyfriend.

“Where?” Comet softly asked, knowing Tup’s hesitation was his answer. Tup, with shaky hands, pulled the sleeves of his blacks up to the middle of his forearms and Comet was able to see the ring of bruises marking his boyfriend’s skin.

Comet cradled Tup’s wrists in his hands, thumbing lightly along with the bruises. He didn’t even want to think about the sound that his boyfriend had made when his  _ buir _ had gripped his wrists that tightly. Comet sighed sadly and hugged Tup once again, tucking his head under his chin.

“The way everyone looked at me,” Tup sniffled, voice low like someone was listening. “They were all so disappointed in me.”

“Tup, I know better than anyone else that sometimes our brothers are disappointed in us for only a little while. I promise you that they don’t feel that way anymore,” Comet reassured his boyfriend.

“But that doesn't take the memory of their faces away.” The eighteen-year-old sounded pitiful to his boyfriend and he started crying again. 

Comet tsked and heaved Tup higher against him. “Oh, darling. Don’t cry, baby, shhhhhhh. You’re okay.”

Comet waited in silence for a few minutes before his back started hurting. He briefly let go of Tup and his heart shattered when Tup whined at the loss of his touch but Comet pressed a kiss to his head. The older teenager shifted back against the headboard and held his arms open again. Tup laid the right side of his head down on his lap, horizontal with the bed with his knees curled up. Comet brushed the ends of his hair and played with it; braiding and twisting it. 

“What else happened? You don’t have to tell me everything but something else happened that you aren’t telling me," Comet pressed on. 

Tup shook his head slowly and let his eyes fall closed, tears falling. “D-don’t want to talk about it.”

Comet cupped the right side of his face and stroked his cheekbone. “We have to, Tup.” 

Tup didn’t answer so Comet decided to play the question game. “Did you have an anxiety attack?” 

Tup nodded, falling back into his silent manner.

Comet asked, “For how long?”

Tup held up two fingers. 

“For two hours? That’s long, Tup’ika.” Comet’s voice was calm when he stated two hours was a long time. “Did Kix and Jesse help you?”

“Mhm,” Tup mumbled, curling closer, biting his lower lip in an anxious way. Comet could tell he wanted to say something but he waited for Tup to tell him himself.

“Fives and Rex aren’t my parents anymore.” 

The statement was so soft that Comet almost missed it. Comet’s head snapped down to look at him and he pulled Tup into a sitting position quickly.

“What do you mean?” He asked, knowing how much Fives and Rex meant to the teenager.

“They aren’t my parents.” Tup’s voice was like steel.

Comet hated how convicted but broken he sounded while saying that horrible sentence. He was too shell-shocked to say anything else but he let Tup cuddle close after a little bit of coaxing. The Wolfpack teenager laid down fully, aware he was taking Kix and Jesse’s bed but he couldn’t care less. Tup pillowed his head on his chest and let his eyes fall closed.

Tup blinked tiredly at his boyfriend with puppy eyes. “Stay, please?”

Comet smiled at him gently and quickly kissed him. “Of course.”

Comet and Tup remain in the bed just like this, cuddling one another. Comet doesn't tear his eyes away from Tup's face the entire time. He watched his precious boyfriend slowly drift off to sleep. It made Comet smile to himself knowing that Tup could just easily fall asleep like this in his arms after going through so much emotional trauma. It reminded him of how significant of a role he played in Tup's life; as his boyfriend. 

Whenever Tup's face scrunched up a tiny bit Comet would make it go away by kissing Tup's cheek softly. Tup smiled slightly in his sleep and relaxed back against Comet again, nuzzling back against his chest. Comet smiled to himself and closed his eyes, just to rest them. 

After seven more minutes have gone by, Comet deemed it time for him to go ahead and slide out of Tup's hold.  _ He should be fast asleep by now,  _ he thought to himself, carefully sliding out from behind Tup. Comet snuck over to the bunk room door and stepped out once the door opened. 

The second Comet was far enough away from the door, he glared knives at Tup's guardians— _ should they even be called that anymore?— _ and he jabbed a finger at them. 

"You." He hissed through clenched teeth. "How  _ dare  _ you? Why the hell would you do that? No, no! I want you to  _ tell  _ me,  _ explain to me _ in your own words what the  _ hell  _ you were thinking? What possessed you two to go and treat Tup like that?! He's the closest thing you will ever have to a child!"

Fives and Rex seemed to have sunk so deep into the couch they disappeared from view—in spirit. 

Comet crossed his arms over his chest and huffed like an angry bull. You could practically see the smoke come out of his flaring nostrils. 

Fives shifted off of Rex and sat next to him. They stared up at Comet, not sure what to say first other than to agree with him. 

Comet gawked at them. Then he pinched the bridge of his nose and squeezed his eyes shut until the corners pinched.

"Why aren't you arguing back?" He asked in confusion. "Why...why are you just letting me yell at you about how  _ wrong  _ you both were?" 

Fives looked down at his lap and closed his eyes for a second.  _ Because we know we were wrong.  _

Rex was the first of the pair to speak that thought out into existence. 

"Comet, what we did was what we thought was right back then. But we know now that we were wrong, completely. We should've never punished Tup to that degree. Maybe we shouldn't have punished Tup at all."

Comet scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Oh, I agree that you shouldn't have punished him  _ to that degree.  _ Punishment was earned…even if I'd hate to admit it, what he did was disrespectful. But you two just…UGH!" Comet stomped away and turned his back, crossing his arms over his chest. "I can't even  _ look  _ at you two right now. You've made me so fucking angry!"

Rex nodded, understanding completely. 

"Punishment or not, that was taken way too far. Rex, I saw his bruises! I know what you did to him. You  _ hurt  _ him!" Comet yelled, turning to face them again because he honestly couldn't yell at them and not look them in the eyes and let them  _ see  _ how fucking pissed off he was. 

Comet pinched two of his fingers together and laughed humorlessly. "And not to mention you yanked on his goddamn hair. What the fuck?!"

Rex turned his head away and clenched his jaw. "That was an accident. He was moving too much to get away and my fingers…they got  _ caught _ in his hair. I didn't purposefully do that, I swear. But that doesn't excuse what I did during all of that."

Comet stared at him, taking that honesty into account. "Yeah…you're damn right it doesn't."

It got silent for a few seconds after that. Rex wasn't sure what to say. Fives wasn't sure what to say either. Comet sure did know what he was going to say next though. 

"I want you to know something, and I want you to listen well, got it?" He said. 

Rex and Fives nodded. 

"He is a  _ kid _ , just like me. We are kids thrust into a war we didn't want to fight in the first place; actually, we didn't have a goddamn choice. We didn't know what we wanted or not wanted…that just wasn't an option." Comet teared up, shoulders pulled up towards his ears. "But Tup tries to make the best of it. All of our friends try to make the best of what's been forced upon us for the very same reason; to fight for the Republic. We make friends. We play games. We laugh together. We cry together. We share our pain with one another. We date…things that a normal teenager would do, and we just aren't normal."

Comet pointed to the door. "But Tup…fucking Tup, he won't let that stop him from making the best of it. And I sit here every day wondering how the hell he does it? How does he keep going on? How does he keep fighting for a cause that we could've chosen not to fight?" Comet sniffled after saying that. He refused to cry though. 

Rex, Fives, Kix, Jesse, and Hardcase all gazed on, listening. 

"Because he has  _ family.  _ Or as Wolffe likes to say, _ aliit.  _ Because what would we do without family, right? He has you two. And you blew it out of the water." Comet made that very clear to them as bluntly as possible. The truth hurt. 

He closed his eyes for a second and took a deep breath to re-center himself. Then he opened his eyes again and looked at the captain and ARC trooper. 

"How will you make it up to him?" He asked them. "How will you show him that you won't leave him? That's the question you need to ask yourselves, and you need to think hard on it because Tup won't stick around with you two if he can't trust you, that's a fact. I know it. Everyone knows it. But he'll hate himself for it and I don't want to see that. And deep down inside of me, even though you hurt him, you don’t want to see him hate himself. Okay?"

Fives and Rex nodded good and well. Comet nodded back. He crossed his arms over his chest and added one last thing. 

"I won't leave him. You can't leave him. Earn his trust back and get your act together."

"We will," Fives finally spoke up. 

Comet nodded one last time and turned around, heading right back into the bunk room because he wanted to go and cuddle with Tup again, leaving Fives, Rex, and the rest of Torrent to process everything he just said in a short amount of time. 

Comet didn't play around. Simple as that.

The Wolfpack teenager crawls back onto Jesse's and Kix's bed and immediately curls back around his boyfriend, big spooning him. Their cuddles always felt like something good; warm. It always felt warm. 

Eventually, after breaking themselves from their stupor, Kix and Jesse walked back into the bunk room and woke Comet up. Comet slowly opened his eyes and smiled up at them with a lazy stretch.

"Hey, kiddo. You gotta go back to your own battalion~" Jesse said while he stretched with a purr. 

Comet nodded, sitting up. "Yeah, I know, I know." 

A hand grabbed him and he looked done. Tup stared up at him. 

"Hey, Tup, I gotta go, love," Comet told him, eyes drooping sadly when Tup frowned, bottom lip trembling. 

Comet shook his head and reached out to brush a hand down Tup's face.

"Shhh. I'll chat with you later, okay? Remember, I'm only a system away~" Comet purred playfully, to which Tup giggled softly and gently slapped Comet's chest with the weakest hits ever. 

Jesse's and Kix's eyes widen at the response. They haven't heard Tup giggle in forever. They guessed it was one of those rare moments that only a boyfriend could get. 

Comet waved cutely at Tup and let his hand slip away from his. Then the Wolfpack teen left the room but not without looking back at Tup. Tup watched him go silently. Once Comet was gone, Tup looked up at Jesse and Kix.

"Hi." Tup’s voice was still soft and quiet but he was at least talking.

Jesse chuckled and sat on the edge of the bed, reaching down to remove his boots. "Hello to you too."

Kix took off his top armor. While they de-armored everything, Tup scooted over to lay in the middle of the bed so Kix could get in the bed behind him. 

Jesse hopped into the bed on Tup's right side and smiled at him. Kix gently got into the bed and crawled over before laying on Tup's left. The two brought the blankets over the three of them and wrapped their arms around Tup, keeping him protected at all times. It was a giant bed burrito. 

* * *

  
  


The next morning, Kix and Jesse woke up to an empty bed between them that was still warm. The two snapped awake and looked around. 

"Shit. Where is he?" Jesse asked, a look of worry permanently stuck on his face. Both of them didn’t want to think of all the horrible things that could've happened to an unstable teenager that just went through emotional trauma. Or the things that he might do himself.

Kix scanned the room for any sight of the troubled teenager. Natta. Nope. 

"Dammit. Hold on," Kix mumbled. 

He crawled out of the bed and tried his best to not bring attention to himself as he quickly walked across the room to the door. But before he could walk through, it opened to reveal a freshly showered teenager with a relaxed smile on his face. Running a towel through his wet locks to dry them and a towel was also around his waist. 

Tup was confused at the concerned look in his brothers’ eyes then his mouth opened in an 'o' when he connected the dots that Kix definitely discovered he left. 

"Oh.  _ Hii~" _ Tup grinned nervously, looking from side to side, still a little closed off.

"Where were you?" Kix fixed him with an emotionless expression. It was scary though. 

"Well, um, obviously I showered. And I wanted to surprise you and Jesse by draggin’ myself  _ out  _ of bed. I managed as you can see, and I smell good and not that musty sm-"

Kix yanked Tup into a hug and smiled in relief. "Oh goodness, that's a relief."

Tup gasped for air and wheezed, "That makes me feel a whole lot better. Ow."

Kix tore himself away from suffocating the poor child and chuckled, "Sorry, sorry. I'm just…" Kix smacked his lips loudly and gestured at Tup by waving both his hands up and down at his body. "You showered!"

"I'm walking away from you now." Tup swerved around him and avoided eye contact with the embarrassment that was following him. 

Kix burst out laughing, followed by Jesse who got out of bed and heard everything. Tup avoided eye contact with Jesse too and went all meek immediately. 

Jesse patted his shoulder sympathetically. 

Tup sat on the bed and searched for his pair of blacks, then hesitantly stated, "Hey….I want to leave the barracks for a bit, ya know. I've been stuck in here for too long."

"You more or less house arrested yourself bud," Jesse told him with a snicker. 

Tup grabbed his blacks and stood up. "Har har."

"But yeah, we can totally go out and do something different for a change instead of laying in the bed. What do you want to do?" Kix asked. He was happy Tup was taking a couple of steps forward in recovering and not steps back. 

"Eat." Came the simple, straightforward answer. 

Jesse clapped his hands together and rubbed. "That we  _ can  _ do!"

Tup turned around, and before he dropped his towel to the floor he glared knives at his brothers and growled at them, "Turn around please."

"We have the sa-"

"I said turn around!!" Tup screeched, turning red already. 

Kix forcefully twisted Jesse around and laughed at the ceiling, patting Jesse on the back. Tup meekly wiggled his blacks on and ignored the fact his brothers were standing behind him. But he screamed internally anyway.

After he finished, the three of them walked down to the mess and grabbed a few rations for breakfast before they sat down at a table. Rex and Fives have sat in the corner of the room so they wouldn't disturb Tup, both looking shocked and relieved that Tup left the barracks. Kix and Jesse noticed a few members of different Alpha companies glancing their way, mostly at the teenager that they haven’t seen in a good amount of time. Tup ducked away from the glances, obviously seeing and feeling them. Though he did make eye-contact with Wooley, who gave him a gentle smile. The younger teenager did his best to return it.

Tup sighed quietly and stuffed a dry ass ration into his mouth as he listened to Jesse tease Kix mercilessly. Whatever Jesse said caused Tup to snort loudly, which afterward he clapped his hand over his nose and blushed hard, looking away. 

Jesse and Kix laughed at the sound and continued to conversate with one another. Tup redirected his attention to his food. 

"Doesn't get any better than this, does it?" He asked rhetorically. 

"Nope," Jesse mumbled, taking a bite of his ration. 

Tup took another bite of his tasteless meal of the day and looked up, looking straight ahead. A table down from his sat the trooper that sparred with him the day he was punished. The trooper just so happened to look up and they met eyes. 

Tup looked back down at his ration bars and poked them in disinterest. His forehead burned. Tup slowly looked back up again and his lips pulled into a straight line. 

The trooper was still staring at him. 

Tup felt something churn in his stomach at the look he was giving him. It wasn't friendly. It was…it was indescribable, but it put Tup in a bad position. It made him feel uncomfortable, and his ‘already-in-short-supply’ self-confidence instantly dwindled and disappeared. Pushing his dark thoughts away, Tup subconsciously pressed close to Jesse and Kix and felt either Kix or Jesse wrap an arm around his waist. The teenager just needed a physical touch from someone, and he prayed that the other trooper would stop looking at him. 

But he never stopped. 

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the first part of Tup's....situation/predicament. That's what I'm calling it because I can't think of a different term. So, just a side note in case you don't remember; Tup's mental health has been declining for a good amount of time, and his punishment and the rejection he felt was his last straw. Even though I didn't make it very hard for you guys to find evidence of that, you guys still commented, pointing out that something has been wrong with Tup for quite some time. 
> 
> This is where things get serious. The next three parts of this story arc are dark and intense. I usually write things less dark and more just suspenseful but that is not the case for this story. Please don't read any part(s) that make you uncomfortable or bring back bad memories. Don't feel obliged to read a certain part just for the sake of getting the plot; you will understand the plot perfectly even if you miss the intense parts. Fair warning, this story arc will make you sad; if it hurt me and my editor to write it you will feel sad or depressed reading it. Even though I love Tup, this is necessary for the story. With that said, my editor and I will be putting warnings in the summary of every chapter, telling you exactly what possible triggering moments will occur. ❤️️
> 
> Alright, sorry for that long note but I wanted to give you guys a rundown of how this is going to work. Thank you guys so much for the support and I hope you don't plan on murdering me and Angel in the next few weeks. 💙
> 
> Beta-reader/Editor-AngelWars (Ao3). She probably wrote at least half of this chapter and she will be playing a big part in the writing stage of the next three chapters. She is awesome. Go show her some love. And I give her full credit for the....interesting/evil ending that you guys don't understand just yet.


	46. Chapter 46-I'm Worse When I'm Alone (pt. 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As a method of trying to get back to normal, (somewhat) Tup asks Kix if he can go out on his own. Kix is hesitant, seeing that Tup had never been out in public without them, but he gives him reluctant permission. Will he regret that decision?
> 
> Warning: Minor assault (of a minor, technically speaking)

Comet got back to the public 104th as quickly as possible because he had gotten word that they were about to be sent out on another big mission. He didn't want to leave his precious boyfriend again, but he had to lest he got yelled at by Wolffe. 

He entered the barracks of the Wolfpack and sighed, taking off his blacktop. Ace watched him and giggled. 

Blitz threw a towel at Comet and said, "Hey! Been waiting for you. Wolffe's in the bunkroom."

Comet removed the towel off his face and nodded. "Alright, thanks."

"How's Tup?" Boost asked from his place on the couch across from Ace and Blitz. 

Comet looked over his shoulder. "Oh, he's fine." He wasn't going to tell them he, indeed, was not fine. He felt that they didn't need to know that. Perhaps Wolffe should know though if he asked. 

Comet entered the dimly lit bunkroom and made his way over to Wolffe, who was sitting on the edge of his bed. 

"Hey," Comet greeted him, standing in front of the much older clone. 

Wolffe smiled at him. "Hey, kid. Glad to see you're back on time, _this_ time," Wolffe chuckled, playfully punching Comet in the stomach.

Comet made an 'oof' sound and grimace, one eye closed. "Haha. Funny," He deadpanned, straightening up again.

"Heh. How's the kid?" Wolffe asked, asking about Tup. 

Comet tilted his head back and sighed, brushing one hand back across the grains of his hair. "Ahhhh. You know, Wolffe, he's…I told the others that he's doing fine. But in all honesty, he's not."

Wolffe raised an eyebrow. "How do you mean?"

"Welllll…" Comet rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "So, Rex and Fives punished Tup for being disrespectful or more as Rex punished him."

Wolffe blinked. "Okay, well, I mean, that's not concerning…he's a teenager."

"Yeah, yeah, but that's not it, Wolffe. The problem is _how_ Rex punished him." Comet said, hands twitching by his side. "Tup talked back to Fives and Rex decided to punish him by forcing him to spar with him in front of everyone in their sparring room. But..his punishment got way out of hand." 

Comet started to tap the right side of his hip as a means to keep himself calm. Wolffe noticed the movement and kept an eye on that. 

"Then Rex hurt him, badly. He punished him, yes, but the amount of force he used was unnecessary, and he yanked on Tup's hair—which he defended that action by saying it was an accident." Comet said, tapping his hip a bit faster. "He said that Tup moved a certain way to get away from him and his fingers ended up tangled in Tup's hair, causing him to yank on it. But still." Comet's fingers picked up the pace. 

Comet raised his hand and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Now Tup is keeping his distance from Fives and Rex, ya know. He's scared of them. I could see it in his eyes. But at the same time, he looked like he was thinking very hard on things, things he wouldn't tell me." Comet's right hand continued to tap his hip as he opened his eyes to look at Wolffe. 

"I talked to Rex and Fives, yelled at them, even," He put his left hand in front of himself, indicating that Wolffe should not comment on that. "And they apologized. They told me that they were very wrong for what they did, for what Rex did, and they are sorry. I appreciated that of them..but that doesn't make me feel less concerned about Tup's well-being," Comet said.

He brought his left hand up to bite his nails. "I'm scared that Tup might enter a state of depression again because of this. I don't want him to, but I'm not sure if I can stop that from happening. And it scares me a lot, Wolffe," Comet whispered, gritting his teeth. His tapping movement had picked up in rhythm and speed, becoming erratic. 

Wolffe snapped his fingers to get Comet's attention and the teenager stopped immediately. 

"Comet, breathe,” Wolffe directed, eyeing the teenager in front of him. 

Comet nodded, taking a breath. His fingers stopped their tapping and remained in stand-still.

"Thanks." Comet thanked Wolffe for that. "What do I do?"

Wolffe hummed and leaned back, looking the teenager in the eyes. "For now I think that you should continue to support Tup the best you can. We'll be at a long distance from the 501st for a while since we'll be in the outer rim for quite some time. Honestly, I think that's all you can do, Comet. Make sure that Tup knows he's not alone."

"He's not alone. He has Jesse and Kix." Comet responded, which reminds him. "Everyone was mad at Tup at first because he disrespected Fives and Rex. Tup stopped sleeping in his bed next to Rex and Fives' bed and started to sleep in Kix's and Jesse's bed—still is. Then he started behaving strangely, stopped talking, and Kix, along with Jesse had words with Fives, Rex, and the others just overheard. The others soon agreed with Kix's defending position of Tup and now they are angrier at Fives and Rex instead."

"Hm. I guess that's a good thing. Good on Jesse and Kix for coming to Tup's defense." Wolffe said with a soft smile. 

"Yeah. So, he has two people there that are taking care of him. But yeah, I get what you are saying. I'll keep in contact with him." Comet said, smiling. 

Wolffe nodded. "Good." _I should have a chat with Cody about this. He should know how much of a di'kut our little brother is,_ Wolffe thought. 

* * *

A week after his conversation with Comet, Wolffe had kept his promise to himself to tell someone about what Rex had done to his teenager. Luckily, the 104th and the 212th had partnered with one another for their collaborated mission. Now Cody and Wolffe were sitting in a dark tent with one another going over paperwork. The battle had finished a few days ago and the commanders were just waiting for the last pick up. Injured troopers go first. 

Wolffe broke the silence by clearing his throat. Cody perked up at the sound and looked over at Wolffe. "Yes?" Cody prompted, cocking his head to the side in such a 'Kenobi-style' that made his batch mates laugh every time they were put on a mission with his battalion. 

"Need to tell ya something. It's about Rex." Wolffe said, pre-warning Cody with the serious tone in his voice. 

Cody's eyebrows furrowed some. "What happened?"

Wolffe deactivated his datapad and leaned back in his seat. "So, my kid told me that Tup got punished by Rex and Fives, mostly Rex. The kid talked back to the ARC and Rex got angry, decided to punish him in front of everyone by forcing him to spar with him."

Cody blinked. Wolffe quickly continued before he could say something, "Rex went too far with Tup. He yanked him around and was too rough with him, I heard. Kriffing put bruises on him and everything. Not light ones. Dark ones."

Cody's face twitched some. Wolffe was all too familiar with that. It meant he was pissed and was trying desperately to hold it back, to calm himself. So like Kenobi. 

"And he yanked on his hair, but Rex said that was an accident. Tup tried to get out of his hold and was moving too much, resulting in Rex's fingers getting caught." Wolffe said. 

Cody stood up and walked away, pinching the bridge of his nose. Wolffe watched silently. 

"Then?" Cody prompted, feeling as though there was more. 

"Tup hasn't been himself lately if you know what I mean. Comet went to go visit him last week because I got a call from Kix that Tup wanted to see him, and Comet came back concerned and upset," Wolffe said. 

Cody gritted his teeth. "Dammit."

"I have the urge to talk some sense into Rex," Wolffe said. 

"Same here." Cody agreed. He raised one hand and chopped at the air a couple of times. "We need to talk some sense into him. That di'kut. There's a fine line between punishment and taking it too far. I feel like Rex took it a bit over the line." 

"Very," Wolffe mumbled, standing up. "Come on. We are having a little chat with the others."

Cody turned around to look at him in confusion. "Others?"

Wolffe nodded. "Yeah. Ponds and By deserve to know about this."

"Okay, I agree." Cody nodded, following Wolffe over to the small transportable hologram communicator. 

They waited for a few seconds until their transmission reached a communicator officer on Bly's ship. 

"This is Commander Wolffe of the 104th Battalion. I want to speak with commander Bly in a duo along with commander Ponds." Wolffe told the officer. 

The officer nodded and said, "Okay. I'll notify commander Bly that you want to speak with him. Give me a moment and he'll be in just a moment." 

Wolffe nodded and watched the officer out his side of the holo-call on hold. Just a bunch of static. While he did, Wolffe took the opportunity to get in contact with Ponds, wherever he was. Wolffe told an officer from the 187th Legion that he wanted to talk to commander Ponds. The was put on hold for that location as well and then it was just a lot of waiting from there. 

The hologram on Bly's side flickered to show Bly standing there. 

"Hello Wolffe," Bly greeted him. "Oh, is that Cody hiding back there?" Bly asked, smirking. 

Wolffe smirked. "Yes."

Cody stepped forward and smiled at Bly. "Hello."

Ponds' side soon flickered online as well to reveal the tired-looking commander. He sighed heavily and just about glared at Wolffe. 

"What is it, Wolffe?" Ponds asked with a hiss. "I am busy as the moment and I can't worry about trivial thi-"

"It's about Tup," Wolffe interrupted quickly before Ponds could even fully assume that it wasn't important. 

Ponds froze and looked away sheepishly. "Oh."

Bly snickered at his older brother and straightened up. "Do tell, Wolffe," Bly prompted for him to go on. 

Wolffe took a deep breath. 

Bly's eyebrows furrowed. "Oof. This sounds heavy."

Wolffe chuckled and nodded. "It is." Then he explained everything, from Tup having disrespected Rex and Fives, resulting in Rex punishing him in a harsh way, to Tup feeling depressed and not talking to Fives and Rex now and Comet went to go visit him and felt concerned for boyfriend's health. 

By the end of it, Bly and Ponds looked pissed as all hells. Wolffe could tell Bly was angry because he always kept his arms crossed say up high over his chest when he was angry. He could tell Ponds was angry by the way his lips were pulled into a forced straight line and his face lacked emotions. But they both looked just about ready to go wring someone's neck. Wolffe shut his mouth and waited for any kind of reaction, colorful ones most likely. 

Ponds was the first to say something. "I'm going to kill him." 

Bly jumped in, "We would’ve never done that to Rex when we were in training. Yes, we would punish him unless Jango beat us to it, but we never hurt him." 

Cody nodded. "Agreed."

Ponds groaned and wiped a hand down his face in exasperation. He cocked his head and pinched the bridge of his nose. Must be his stress getting triggered. Wolffe grimaced in sympathy. 

"We are going to have to have a serious talk with him," Wolffe said. 

"Yes. Yes, we will," Ponds responded coldly, staring at the floor after he lowered his hand from in front of his face. His brothers all looked at him and gave their own nods of agreement. 

* * *

Tup stared up at the ceiling of the 501st's Coruscant bunker and sighed. It had been a week since Comet left and he just couldn't seem to catch a break from grey boredom. Today seemed even more boring than the previous days. This morning, Kix and Jesse made sure that Tup ate breakfast—rations—and they made sure he showered, which he wasn't reluctant to do.

After Tup settled down on Kix's and Jesse's bed, Kix left to go to the medbay and check out their equipment to make sure they had everything before their battalion left-back out for another mission for who knew how long. This left Jesse and Tup alone in the bunk room. Eventually, Jesse left too. He went out into the city with Hardcase to have some fun. 

Now Tup was alone. He tried to find some entertainment but it was way too quiet in the bunk room. He took a nap, but that lasted about forty-five minutes because of a weird dream he had. Tup stared up at the ceiling again and shook his head. 

"Nope. I can't do this anymore. I need to leave." Tup mumbled, sitting up. 

He swung his legs and stood up, stretching his arms above his head. He groaned and sighed. Tup left the bunk room and discovered the rec room to be empty too. It seemed both Fives and Rex were also gone. _Of course, everyone left me, again,_ Tup thought depressingly, taking a deep breath. 

The stale, empty air in the rec room wasn't comforting at all so he left the barracks altogether and made his way down to the nearest elevator. He decided at the last minute to head up to the medbay, where he knew Kix would be. The double doors opened with a whoosh, alerting the hardworking medic inside. 

"Oh, hey Tup!" Kix greeted him enthusiastically. 

Tup chuckled as he approached. "You sound enthusiastic. What's up?"

"I am organizinggg~" Kix spun in his wheeled-chair, spreading his arms out wide. 

Tup laughed at his behavior and took a seat on the edge of an empty medical cot in front of Kix's chair and watched him. 

Kix sighed and nodded. "Yeahh~ I'm doing that right now." He took one look at the teenager, then he leaned back in his chair. "You look like you want to ask something. What is it, kid?"

Tup gulped and looked away. "Well…um…" Tup suddenly leaned forward, clapping his hands onto his knees, and he babbled out, "I am super bored and I can't seem to relax and sleep because every time I do I have weird dreams, so I want to ask if I can go out, but I know you'll say-"

"Woah Woah! Tup'ika!" Kix waved his hands in front of his face, laughing. "Geez kiddo. You are more nervous than I thought."

Tup blushed pink and mumbled, "Well…yeah. I am asking to go out." He tried off a bit like he was prompting for Kix to get what he was asking. 

Kix nodded slowly and gestured to Tup to continue. 

"Outside…" Tup mumbled, looking up, wondering if Kix will just get it. 

Kix blinked. 

"I want to go outside! Outside the barracks, like, in the city!" Tup finally said it. 

Kix leaned back and said, "Ahhh." That was not a positive sound. Tup knew that. "Absolutely not," Kix deadpanned. 

Tup gawked at him. "Why not?"

"Because I said so." Kix canceled his request quickly, turning his back to Tup. 

Tup quickly stood up and walked over to the counter. He hopped up and sat on the edge of it, looking at Kix. 

"Kix, please, you don't understand."

"I understand plenty, Tup. You are bored. And as a teenager, you want to go out and experiment with the outside world. Not in battle. But actually find entertainment. I rather you not." Kix said. 

"Why not?" Tup asked. 

Kix sighed, long and slow, then he faced Tup and asked, "Where would you go? Hm? Where in the city would you go to have some night fun by yourself?"

Tup fiddled with his thumbs. "Um…I was thinking, 79s."

Kix's eyes widened comically. "What?"

Tup looked away, feeling a bit awkward now. He believed that he could persuade Kix to let him go, not that Kix could stop him from leaving per se, but he didn't want to end up disappointing Kix. 

"I am bored, Kix. I want to go out. 79s seems like the only place I could go to that'd accept clones. I mean, it's literally a club for clones. But Jesse went there with Hardcase, and I was thinking that maybe I should be allowed to go,” Tup said, eyeing Kix. "I am old enough, I feel like, and I want to go for the first time."

Kix remained silent for a minute, contemplating. He thought about everything that Tup said, and he was right. Technically he was eighteen. Kix sighed quietly and made eye contact with Tup. 

"Well you can't go by yourself, that's for sure," Kix explained. 

"Yeah, but Jesse and Hardcase went. I'll just catch up with them or I'll find them there and stick with them." Tup smiled innocently. 

Kix raised an eyebrow. He didn't seem persuaded enough. He looked very hesitant to allow this to happen. 

Tup stood up straight instead of outright pouting and he crossed his arms over his chest. "Kix, I promise that I won't forget anything I shouldn't. I won't go anywhere I did not say I would go. I'll stay in 79s until I come back home."

Kix crossed his arms over his chest. "Promise?" Kix asked.

"Promise," Tup repeated himself, confirming that he promised 100%. 

A small smile twitched on Kix's face, then he chuckled lightly and said, "Fine. You may go."

Tup couldn't help but bounce back in excitement. Kix raised one hand in front of himself and laughed at his little brother's reaction. 

"But you need to stay in 79s," Kix repeated protectively. 

Tup rolled his eyes playfully and nodded tiredly. "Yessss. Yesss. I know."

Kix chuckled again and swatted Tup away. "Alright, go on now. I want you back by 2300 or midnight. No later. Understand?"

Tup nodded fervently, walking back towards the double doors again. "Yep! See ya!"

Kix hurriedly adds, "Comm me when you are on your way home!"

"I will!" Tup yelled before the doors closed behind him. 

Kix stared at the doors, then sighed, turning around to face his desk again. _I hope I don't regret this._

… 

Tup pulled up to the club with a giant neon orange sign hovering over the front doors. He smiled; gigantic and cute. Exhilaration flowed through his veins like a charged battery as he stepped out of the taxi speeder. 

"Here you go." He handed credits to the driver. "Thank you!"

"Yeah, no problem." The driver waved and drove off, joining the traffic. 

Tup turned around and stared up at the sign. He took a deep breath and exhaled, trying to ease his nerves. _Alright. Here goes nothing._ Tup walked up to the doors and entered the club. 

It was loud inside. Dubstep music played at the highest volume. Clones of every kind danced to the music, walked about, conversed with one another, and drank alcohol. _Alcohol._ Tup bit his lip. _Ummm, what should I do first?_ He looked this way and that. _If I were Jesse and Hardcase, where would I be??_

Tup walked up to the glowing blue counter of the bar and took a seat, resting his elbows on the table in front of him. There was a glowing, holographic screen on the wall in front of Tup hanging above, showing symbols and images on it. Tup watched the screen for a while until he was startled by a female alien who walked up to him and smiled. 

"Hey, _sugar~_ whatcha here for?" She asked, looking him up and down. 

Tup fidgeted in his seat and gulped. "Ummm. This is my first time here and I am looking for a brother of mine."

The woman laughed sweetly. "Oh my! Your brother? Well, I'm going to have trouble helping you out."

Tup sighed, nodding in agreement. "Yeah, I know." 

"Hm. First time, you said?" The woman asked, resting her skinny, purple elbows on the counter. 

Tup nodded. "Yep."

"Huh. Okay. Well," The girl raised one hand out to him and smiled. "The name's Iru! Yours? Y'all clones have names, right?"

"Oh, yes! My name is Tup."

"Cool name," Iru complimented him. "You know, if it's your first time, you should probably try your first drink," Iru said, winking at him. "I've got just the thing! Be right back!"

Before Tup could say anything, Iru was gone. He sighed and smacked his forehead into the counter. _What have I gotten myself into? I can't drink before I find Jesse! This won't go well, not at all._ Better judgment would’ve told him to leave now, find Jesse, then return and get a drink after knowing where he was, but his lively spirit and curiosity got the better of him.

He peeked through his eyes and sighed. _I need to experiment and try new things! This is my first time in a club and I should do this without my brothers. I want to have fun too!_ Tup smiled sadly and fought the burning sensation in the back of his eyes. _I deserve that much anyway…_

Iru returned and placed a cocktail glass onto the table and leaned back, crossing her arms over her chest. Tup eyed the stuff suspiciously and made a face. Iru giggled in amusement. 

"You're adorable! Goodness, this is Gin, better known as The Alexander. It's the best kind of alcoholic drink to take for the first time," Iru said. 

Tup hummed. "What's in it?"

"Good question! Well, I’ll just go ahead and ease your worries and yell ya how I made it.” She raised her hand and began to list everything off. “I filled a cocktail shaker halfway full with ice cubes. Added 1-ounce gin, 1-ounce crème de cacao, and 1-ounce cream. Then I shook it well. Strained the liquid into a cocktail glass and garnished with nutmeg. As you can _see~"_ Iru waved a hand down at the delicate sprinkles of brown on top of the creamy liquid. It looked like hot chocolate, kind of. Or that was Tup's naiveness talking. 

Tup licked his lips. _It does look really good._ "Okay, I'll try it!"

"Cool!" Iru cheered. "I want to see your face after you've gotten your first sip of it. Don't mind _meee~"_

Tup blinked nervously, then he picked up the cold glass and tipped his head back. His eyes widened in shock, then he looked at Iru and smiled. 

"Oh wow! Oh my—this is delicious!" Tup showed his enjoyment of it, licking the foam off his lips. 

_"Righhhtt~?"_ Iru grinned. 

Tup nodded happily. "Yes indeed. I think this is the best thing I've ever drunk!"

"Well, I'm glad to have been the first person to help your taste buds venture out into the world of adults!" Iru waved her hands up by her head. 

"Hey! Can I have a beer please?" A clone asked down at the other end. 

"Oh! Yeah, yeah, I'm coming. Ummm, I gotta go. Enjoy!" Iru waved goodbye and returned to work. 

Tup waved back and continued to enjoy his drink. It was absolutely delicious and thick. He sat there for a while longer until a hand tapped his shoulder. Tup looked over his shoulder and nearly gasped.

By his side stood the trooper from the mess a few days ago. Tup's heart dropped to his stomach. _Oh no. It's him._ Tup looked away and shyly said, "Hi."

The clone smiled. "Hello. You finally said hi to me after all this time.”

Tup bit his lip and focused hard on his glass, staring into it so hard it could've shattered. 

"Where's the medic and Jesse?" The clone asked, looking around. "I don't see them."

Tup tapped his knee soundlessly. "I'm alone."

The clone cocked his head to the side. "Oh…why?"

"I decided to come here and spend my first time at 79s by myself, without them following me around," Tup said with honesty, a forced smile on his face. "As protective as they are, and I appreciate it, I do want some freedom. Ya know."

"Ho-oh! I get it, kid. Freedom…it's what makes you a real man!" The clone laughed loudly, causing Tup to chuckle. The clone drifted off into silence and looked at the drink in front of Tup. "What's that?"

"Oh this…um, Gin. The Alexander," Tup answered with a small smile.

 _"Ooooh~_ interesting. Hey, is that your first drink?" 

Tup nodded. 

"Wow! Was it good?" The trooper asked with a kind, non-unnerving smile, making Tup feel…oddly comfortable around him now. 

"Y-Yes. Very!" Tup responded with a genuine smile.

"That's good!" The clone tilted his head to the side and put most of his weight into his right hip, one hand on it. "Nothing worse than bad alcohol."

Tup fiddled with his thumbs again and nodded, unsure how to feel about the man talking to him. 

"May I join you?" The clone asked, waving to the empty seat beside Tup. 

Tup realized there was an empty seat and he nodded immediately. It was a reflex. Kindness. The man sat down and waved his hand. 

"Miss!" He called, waving at Iru. Iru came over with an empty glass in her hand and a rag inside of it, sweeping left to right with fell swoops. 

_"Yes~"_ Iru acknowledges him, looking from the clone to Tup. 

"I'd like a beer please, _sweetness~"_ The clone ordered with a wink. 

Iru nodded curtly. "You got it!" She walked away. 

Tup pursed his lips, not liking the silence, so he turned to look at the trooper. _"Soooo~_ what's your name?"

"The name's Chains," Chains answered, smirking at the expression on Tup's face after he learned of that. "Ha! What's with the face?"

Tup giggles lightly and leaned back. "Why's your name Chains? Sounds so…deadly." _Yeah, that's one way to describe it,_ Tup thought. 

Chains rested his elbow on the wooden counter and sighed in annoyance. "Well, my squad and I were on a mission in this abandoned building. We were running through the building to reach our designated location and there were these big-ass chains on the floor that I totally didn't see because the room was dark as kriff." Chains turned away from Tup and blushed in embarrassment. "I got caught up in the chains and tripped, smacking my face into the floor."

Tup choked on the air and clapped a hand over his mouth to stifle the awkward sound. He trembled hard, trying to hide his laughter. 

Chains noticed, but continued, "The droids started attacking and my squad had to save my ass."

Tup burst out laughing, covering his mouth again. Chains stared at him. Tup waved his hand apologetically and shook his head. 

"That's hilarious!" Tup commented, smiling at Chains. 

Chains smirked. "Heh. Yeah." 

Iru came over with Chains’ beer and placed it on the counter. He thanked her and took a swig of the alcohol. 

"Hmm. What was the craziest mission you've ever been on?" Chains asked Tup. 

Tup perked up and got excited by the question. "Glad you asked! Get comfortable, because this will be a long story."

Chains chuckled and took another drink of his beer. Tup spent the next fifteen minutes or so explaining the craziest mission he's ever been on with a grin on his face. While he did, Chains ordered more beer for himself and listened patiently, nodding along to everything the kid said. Tup blasted off, blabbing on about every detail until he reached the ending. By the time he did, he was thirsty again. 

"You need another drink?" Chains asked, noticing the expression on his face. 

Tup coughed. "Yep."

Chains raised his hand and then he froze. "Hold on. How old are you? You didn't just sneak into the club to drink alcohol while underage, did you?"

"Umm…" Tup blinked, getting nervous. _Maybe I should run out of here before I get in trouble._

"You gotta be at least 21 and over to get a drink here.” Chains said with a tone that almost made him sound like he was going to tell if Tup was underage.

“I….” Tup gulped. _I shouldn’t lie. I should just tell the truth. Lying will get me in more trouble..._ “ I am eighteen,” Tup answered confidently, trying his hardest to not look nervous.

There was silence between them. It made Tup regret telling Chains or ever coming here. Now he was going to get in big trouble with Jesse, or Kix, or... _R-Rex and Fives. Oh no._

“Bah! No matter, kiddo,” Chains barked out laughing, startling the teenager. Chains saw that Tup looked mighty tense. He flicked Tup’s shoulder. “Calm down, dude, and wipe that look off your face. I ain’t no snitch."

Tup visibly sagged in his seat, exhaling in relief. 

“Heh. Yeah.” Chains smirked. “Remember this, kid. You’re a soldier, a kid, fighting a war for thousands of planets! Do you honestly think that a simple, restrictive rule like that applies to you?”

Tup blinked. _He’s right. I am fighting clankers and the separatists and putting my life on the line! I should be allowed to get a fucking drink!_ “Yeah! You’re right,” Tup said with a grin. He puffed out his chest and nodded in agreement. 

Chains smiled an…indescribable smile, but it went right over Tup's head. “Good for you kid! Since you are a _man,_ I'll get you something stronger than gin. Finish up that drink." Chains raised his hand higher and waved at Iru. 

Tup nodded, drinking the rest of the creamy liquid. “Yeah….” He had this one curious question hanging in the back of his mind that he couldn’t ignore. “Hey, how old are you?” He asks Chains.

Without looking at Tup, Chains said, “I'm twenty-one.”

Tup slowly nodded and smiled. 

Iru came up to them and greeted Chains with another smile. “Yes sir!”

"Tequila please!" Chains ordered for Tup. 

Tup blinked, eyes widening comically. "Tequila?!"

"Yeah, kid! You need to drink something stronger. _Shoot._ Gin ain't gonna give you a little push to the fun side. Tequila’s got the kick in it."

"Fun side?" Tup questioned. 

Chains smirked, nodding slowly. _"Yeahhh~_ fun side."

"Hmm. Okay. What's tequila?" Tup asked nervously. 

Chains pointed over his shoulder at a random table with six troopers seated at it and said, "That's tequila!"

Tup looked over his shoulder and gawked subtly. The troopers at the table were going crazy, flinging themselves this way and that, yelling and screaming, and it looked like some of them were singing. One of them was knocked out cold on the table, fast asleep. 

Tup bit his lower lip. "Ummm, are you sure I should be drinking that? I literally just ha-"

"I'm sure! Seriously, you'll loveeee it," Chains immediately answered, waiting for Iru to come back. "Tequila comes in small shot glasses for a reason. It's strong."

Tup pursed his lips again, squinting at Chains. "Hmmmm."

Chains chuckled at how adorably suspicious Tup was acting and he reached out to touch Tup's hair. HIS HAIR. No one touched Tup's hair except for his family and Comet, but Chains did nothing but pat his head like he was a dog.

"Dude, believe me when I say it's good. Watch," Chains said, leaning away cooly.

Tup frowned and crossed his arms over his chest. "Okay, I'll hold you to that."

Five minutes later… 

"Hic! Oh, my stars!" Tup giggled madly, leaning heavily against the counter. "Dude, you gotta _tryyy_ this! It's so good!"

"And how much did you drink?" Chains asked, smirking. 

"Ummmmmmm, _twooooo~"_ Tup held up two fingers to show how many he drank. 

Chains blinked in surprise. "Wow." He looked away and mumbled, "Maybe I shouldn't have had you drink Tequila then."

"Race me!!" Tup squealed, raising his hands high above his head. 

"What?" Chains asked. 

"Race me! _Stars,_ do I have to repeat it to ya? Are youuu deaf?!" Tup asked loudly, but not as loud as the music. He dropped his hand down. Then Tup leaned forward and got in Chains' personal space and poked his chest. "Are you scared I'mma beat you?"

"No," Came the straight forward answer. 

_"Thennnnn…"_ Tup flipped his hand back and forth, leaning away. 

Chains eyed Tup up and down and smiled. "Alright, you asked for it."

They ordered about two more shots for the two of them. Tup got two. Chains got two. They settled back in their seats and prepared to race. 

"Ready?" Chains asked, checking on his drinking partner for the night. 

"Yes!" Tup grinned. 

"Go!" 

Tup quickly grabbed his glass and drank it. Once that was emptied, he reached for the other one and gulped, swerving right off his seat. Chains caught him and gasped. 

"Woah woah! You good?" Chains asked, looking down at the young trooper on his lap. 

_"Yesss~"_ Tup slurred, looking up at him. _"Heyyyy_ , did you finish?"

"Yes, because you suck at drinking," Chained teased him, helping him back up onto his seat. 

"And…and…you…" Tup raised a finger, thinking about roasting him. 

"Don't you dare," Chained deadpanned, knowing exactly what he was going to say. 

_"Swallowwwww!"_ Tup squealed loudly, spinning in his chair. 

Chains shook his head and watched Tup spin. Tup stopped suddenly when the next song came on full blast. 

"No way!" Tup exclaimed, turning to look at the dance floor. 

Chains got off his seat and chuckled, getting close to Tup. "You wanna dance?" 

Tup smiled at him. "Wo-Would I? Sure!"

Chains winked at Tup, who completely missed that again, and grabbed his hand gently. "This way~"

Tup followed him without reluctance and entered the crowd of dancing clones and Twi-lek's. Chains turned around to face Tup and bounced to the music. Tup watched him, never having danced to music before. He watched silently for a while, then a few seconds later he began to tap his foot to the music. 

Eventually, Tup swayed his hips to the beat. He discovered, tonight, that he could dance, and he never knew it. It felt good to let out all his stress through the movement of his limbs and the rapid beat of the music. He could feel the heavy rhythm through the floor. The vibrations rode up through his feet and took over his whole body. It made his body buzz with extra energy he thought he never had before. He never felt more alive in his whole life. He felt… _free._

Tup smiled down at his feet and then looked up. His eyes met Chains for a split second. The young trooper looked away and danced to himself. 

A few minutes passed, Chains seemed to have gotten closer. Tup didn't notice. He was feeling this song too much. When he looked back up at his drinking partner again, he flinched back, startled. 

_"Woahhhhh!"_ Tup laughed. 

Chains caught him before he could fall, looping his hand on the small dip in Tup’s back, and laughed with him. "Sorry, did I scare you?"

"Kind of! Heh heh heh!" Tup laughed, moving out of Chains' arms. 

Chains may have been closer but he still kept his distance. Some part of Tup, a part drowned in alcohol, was very glad that Chains was keeping his distance, but he couldn't remember what part that was. He looked up at the DJ at the front of the dance floor when the song changed. All the clones cheered and whooped. This hyped Tup up. 

"Whoo! Yeah!" Tup cheered, thrusting his fist up into the air as he bounced on the heels of his feet, side to side. 

Chains chuckled and yelled over the music, "You know, you look really cute when you dance like that."

He looked Tup up and down subtly. 

Tup blinked in confusion, but he continued to dance anyway. _"Ohhhhh, uhh, thanksssss~"_

As Tup danced, he ended up further and further away from Chains. Chains’ smile turned into a frown. He didn't like that. He wanted Tup to be closer. While Tup was too infatuated with the new music playing, Chains slid closer and closer until they were almost chest to chest. He grabbed both of Tup's hands and started to jerk his hands back and forth with the beat. Tup giggled and played along. They danced like this, playing with the music, fingers almost intertwined. 

At some point, Tup's hair fell out of its loosened tie and cascaded down his shoulders in a way that looked very...exotic and enticing to Chains. Chains felt the urge to touch Tup's hair or at least get closer. So he took it a step further and got in Tup's personal space. It, in no way, made Tup uncomfortable because he was drunk. Thankfully he got too distracted by another new song and danced away again, his back to Chains. 

Chains struggled to hide his frown well, clearly annoyed by the way Tup kept moving away. He slid up behind Tup, hands drifting to his hips, and tickled them. Tup looked over his shoulder and turned around, a surprised expression on his face. 

"Why'd you do that?"

Chains got an inch closer, head downturned a little while he maintained eye contact with Tup. A flirtatious smile graced his face.

"Well, why wouldn’t I? You are cute as hell.” 

Tup felt nervous. He took a small step back but Chains stepped closer

"And you’re also one feisty catch too. I saw how you talked to Rex. And boy, did it turn me _on."_ Chains growled at the end; low and satisfying.

The sexual comment didn't even faze Tup. The mention of Rex made him turn away though. He felt sad for what felt like an eternity, but really it was only seven seconds. He snapped out of his sad stupor and looked back at Chains. 

"T-That wasn't…I didn't mean-" Tup stuttered. 

"Oh come _onnnn~_ I know it felt _good_ to talk back to Rex of all people when he wanted to disrespect you like that. You deserve the right to yell at him after how he treated you," Chains said cunningly. 

_"I guessss,"_ Tup shrugged.

"Yeah, that's right. Someone so confident as you…well, I like that. Maybe nobody else did, but I did." Chains said, reaching out to touch Tup again. 

Tup's eyes widened. "W-What? Why?"

"Because…someone needed to stand up to Rex's big mouth. Especially that ARC trooper,” Chains nearly growled, smoothly bringing his hands over Tup's hips and down to his backside. 

Tup turned away, feeling guilty. "I shouldn't have done it. I should've kept my mouth sh-"

"Hey, baby, that's not true," Chains purred, touching Tup inappropriately. 

Tup closed his eyes and shook his head. "N-No. I-I…"

Chains leaned forward and cooed into Tup's right ear, making it burn red. "Shhhhh. It's okay. I know. I know they were really unfair and mean to you, right?"

"Y-Yes," Tup mumbled, nodding in defeat. "They did."

"Yeah, they did." Chains took advantage of Tup's sadness and rubbed up and down, feeling up Tup through his armor. 

Tup sniffled lightly and turned away. Chains tilted his head and moved to stand directly in front of Tup. He stared into those beautiful golden eyes filling with tears and he wiped a lone tear away. 

"Shhh. Don't cry. You don't need to cry." Chains drew Tup closer with his other hand. "I can make your pain go away, Tup. I can take it all away. Would you like that?"

Tup stared into Chains' eyes for a second. The alcohol drowned out any judgment he could’ve had. The alcohol controlled his thoughts, his feelings, his every move. He didn’t remember moving to half-hug Chains, to lean against his chest as they slowly danced to the music. He didn’t remember closing his eyes and holding back his tears. He felt dizzy and hurt. That constant ache in his chest could go away. His tears could run dry. A world without pain sounded really good right about now. 

"Y-Yes," Tup whispered. 

Chains grinned, whispering against Tup's lips, teasing him, "Follow me then. I'll take you somewhere where you don't ever have to worry about what other people think. I won't ever treat you the way Rex or Fives did with you."

Tup trembled, feeling dizzy. The alcohol in his system really messed up his sense of judgment. He would've said no to this a long time ago. But he couldn't have known. Chains took advantage of him the second he met him at the bar. 

Chains gently took Tup's hands and led him out of the crowd and into a secluded corner of the room. It was a corner that most troopers went to when they wanted to have some fun as privately as it could be and make out. They called it 'naughty junction.' Chains backed Tup into a corner specifically so no one could see the younger trooper. Next, Chains took this opportunity of close proximity to tangle his fingers into a waterfall of ebony. He pressed his lips against Tup's and brought him even closer. 

Tup froze when the pair of lips pressed against his own. At first, he felt confused. He couldn't remember how he had even gotten on this side of the club in the first place. But kissing this man, someone who definitely wasn't Comet, even though Tup's drunken haze, disgusted him. 

"N-No. S-S-Stop," Tup grumbled against Chains' lips, turning his head to the side to avoid getting kissed again. He thought that Chains would help him another way. Not like this. He thought that he could _get_ him some help.

Chains stopped and smiled. "Why? You said that you wanted this."

"No, I didn't. No. I don'-"

"Shhhh. You're just confused. You think you don't want this because you are ashamed that your _buirs_ will find out," Chains cooed, nuzzling the side of Tup's face. 

Tup flinched away as if he had been burned and gritted his teeth. "N-No."

Chains smiled more. "Yes, that's exactly what this is. But don't worry. They'll never find out." 

Tup squeezed his eyes shut. He had the capability to fight back. To hit Chains where it hurt, but at the same time he was drunk, dizzy, confused, and a headache was starting to form behind his eyes thanks to all this thinking mixed with the amount of alcohol he drank earlier. It gave Chains the perfect opportunity to continue his touching, bringing Tup in for another kiss. 

Chains' hands find their way down Tup's body, slithering to his backside again, and his hands cup Tup's ass.

Tup let out a sound of distress which was quickly and easily muffled by Chains’ mouth. Tup wanted to vomit. He didn't want someone else kissing him. He wanted it to be Comet, not this…this man. Chains. He wanted Comet. Where was he? Tup started to sag against the wall, going weak in the knees. The small part of his brain that was still filled with judgment realized that he had fallen right into this man's trap. 

Tup raised his right hand and placed it on Chains' chest in a weak attempt to get him to stop. Chains chuckled playfully and nipped at Tup's lower lip, looking straight into his eyes. 

"What's wrong? You don't want to be happy again, Tup?" Chains asked, kissing more forcefully. 

It wasn't passionate. Far from it. It hurt. it stung. It scared Tup. The younger trooper whimpered and struggled, managing to get out of the forceful kiss. 

"S-Stop! I don't want this, p-please,” He begged pitifully. 

Chains cocked his head to the side, confusion in his eyes. Then he raised one hand up, placed it on Tup's right wrist, and he squeezed hard. 

Tup gasped in shock and almost cried out, but Chains immediately shut him up with another kiss. Tup whimpered and whined, staring forward, eyes wide with fear. _This can't be happening to me. I swear I didn't want this. Please! Someone. Jesse? Hardcase? Anyone? Help me!_

Tup felt something warm and wet slide its way in between the soft folds of his lips and he screwed his eyes shut. Chains chuckled at the tension in the body of the other and pulled back, brushing his index finger down Tup's face. 

"Shhhhh. Don't cry, baby. It's okay," Chains cooed, uttering that 'endearing' name once more. "I'll make you feel good. Everything will be okay."

And without much preamble, Chains dove back in, smiling into the kiss, while Tup's heart nearly beat out of his chest. Not in a good way. It wasn't good at all. It hurt. It scared him. He felt nauseous, yet his stomach couldn't get rid of whatever it was that made him feel sick. His hands wanted so badly to push Chains off and get rid of him, but his arms felt like lead. His head pounded in unison with his fast-beating heart. The club music seemed to get louder. The stomping of everyone's feet too. The clanging of alcohol glasses and clone jeers echoed all around him. Tup was surrounded by brothers of every kind. And, yet, not near one of them noticed that he was in trouble. That he did not consent in the slightest.

So, Tup thought of the only thing he could. If he couldn't escape this madness, he guessed he could just close his eyes and forget about it. To go somewhere else. 

Just for a little while. 

…

It was around midnight when Tup finally got away from Chains. Chains was quickly satisfied with just kissing Tup. He did nothing else. He might have touched Tup's butt, but he never groped it or went further than that. He bid goodnight to Tup with a smile and walked away, disappearing into the fading crowd. The teenager was left there in a daze. Empty eyed. Pale-faced. And he felt empty inside, but his stomach needed purging. He needed to wash his mouth out. 

The poor teenager dragged himself out of the corner and walked over to the front of the club. He was done. His first time at 79s was completely ruined. He hated every second of it, he realized. Iru was nice. But that hardly mattered compared to the shit show he just went through. 

He stumbled out of the club into the late-night air and stared forward, trembling all over. He felt sick. The taste of alcohol was still heavy in his mouth. He hated the taste. 

Tup reached the middle of the port and stood there. He had no idea how to get home per se. He knew that a taxi speeder was available, but he was alone. Truly alone. Jesse wasn't there with him. Hardcase wasn't with him either. So, he forced himself to go alone and hail a taxi speeder and ask to be taken home. He was lucky enough to find a taxi, praise the spirits for that, and he hopped in and told them where to go. 

The taxi pulled off from the club and Tup didn't look back. He rested the side of his head against the cool glass and let out a shaky exhale. He felt absolutely horrible. But at least he was going home now. 

* * *

The next morning, Tup, Jesse, and Kix were laying around the rec room; Kix and Jesse laid on one of the couches while Tup was on a different one, mindlessly braiding a small piece of his hair as he read something on his datapad.

Kix was melting under Jesse’s hand that worked on the tense muscles in his shoulder. The medic tiredly looked over at the teenager on the other couch, finding it cute how he was playing with his hair without really paying attention to what he was doing. Then Kix remembered that Tup had been asleep when he came into the barracks last night and he never got the chance to ask how it went. 

Kix shifted his arm slightly, getting Jesse’s attention. Jesse glanced down at him, hand still on his shoulder. 

“How was 79’s last night with Tup?” Kix asked. 

Tup was sitting at a distance from them where if he strained hard enough, he'd be able to hear them. The teenager flinched and stopped messing with his hair. _Oh shit._

Jesse leveled Kix with a confused glance. “Huh? What do you mean ‘with Tup’?”

Kix slowly sat up straighter, equally as confused as his husband. “Tup went to the club and he said he would be with you, right?” The medic glanced at the teenager who was previously looking at him, but Tup’s ripped his eyes away to avoid his brother’s glare.

“Right?” Kix repeated, warning in his tone.

Jesse looked really worried now. “N-no. It was just me and Hardcase all night. I didn’t see Tup at all.”

Kix glared harder at Tup. 

Jesse moved Kix off of him as his voice raised when he asked, “Wait, you let Tup go? We never let him go there! Legally he’s allowed to go, but none of us ever give him permission!”

Kix turned his gaze to Jesse. “Well, the only reason I let him go is that he promised he would find you, Jess’!”

Jesse also gave Tup a parental glare/look of concern. “And you, why the hell didn’t you come to find me?! Something could’ve happened to you!”

Tup jumped at the tone of Jesse’s voice, staring at Jesse with wide eyes, and the Lieutenant immediately felt bad. Tup’s...punishment happened only about a week ago. 

Jesse sighed and stood up. He sat down next to Tup and gave him a one-armed hug. “I’m sorry for yelling. But that was dangerous on your part.”

Kix nodded, agreeing with the older clone. “I understand that you want to grow up, Tup, but you are a child still. In reality, not in a war, you are barely an adult. And even then, people will still see you as a kid. We will definitely see you as a kid.”

Jesse stroked Tup’s shoulder to turn his attention back to him. “Just because you aged faster, in the beginning, doesn't mean you can just do whatever you want without us. We didn’t grow up knowing ‘stranger-danger’ or what a predator could look like. But we do know that not all people like clones and they might use that against you to hurt you.”

Tup closed his eyes and leaned into Jesse’s shoulder, nuzzling closer. 

Kix got the final word. “The last thing we need is for you to be taken advantage of because you are young and you aren’t with us.”

Tup was about to nod but something seemed to poke at him from the back of his head. He remembered a semi-dark room, but the floor was shaking to the beat of some type of music. Tup could feel this disgusting, phantom sensation of hands on him, running gingerly but also firmly over his body. His heart was pounding in fear and he wanted to cry. He felt like he was going to throw up as sour saliva collected in his mouth.

Kix frowned and cocked his head to the side when Tup spaced out randomly. “Tup?” 

Tup startled and looked to Kix, looking shaky and scared. 

“Are you okay?” Kix’s question was answered when Tup went pale and he gagged slightly. 

He jumped to his feet and sprinted over to the 'fresher door before quickly ducking over to where the sinks were. He barely had time to brace his arms on the sink before throwing up violently. Bile crawled its way up to his throat. Tup barely registered someone gently holding his hair back away from his face until his hair was gone. The teenager groaned quietly in pain as his stomach contracted painfully, trying to catch his breath before more bile forcibly made its way out of his throat.

“Shhhhh, just breathe, just breathe," Kix coached lightly, stroking his back.

Tup didn’t understand how breathing could help when he was throwing his guts up, but he did it anyway. Slowly, his stomach calmed down and he stopped throwing up. He felt Kix place a semi-cool hand on his head, then pull away. 

“Hmmm. You don’t feel warm. Are you sick?”

Tup nodded; this wasn’t a sickness, per se, but he had a feeling he didn’t want to remember what happened last night. He realized he was taking too long to answer and in a panic, he responded, “I probably just drank too much. Just got nauseous, is all.”

The second after he said that the teenager hissed and winced. _Of all the things I could’ve said, that was what I went with._

Kix stared at him before whispering, “You did _what?_ ”

“Ummmm, can I take it back?” Tup tried, but Jesse flicked him on the head. 

“No, you may not. And now, little brother, we are going to have a lecture about _drinking_ when you aren’t with us because that is a whole 'nother story," Jesse hissed. 

His older brother started dragging him back to the rec room and Tup grumbled along the way, but at least he knew Jesse and Kix loved him.

….

Tup sighed as he heard his comm beep at him. The only reason why he was in bed right now and not out in the rec room was that Fives and Rex were out there. There was no way he was going to be alone with them. He fumbled for his commlink and saw that four people were calling him.

“Hello?” his voice was quiet when he answered, seeing four blue holograms pop up. His boyfriend and his three best friends. Tup pulled himself into a sitting position, hugging his knees up to his chest.

“ _Hey._ ” His best friend’s voice, Wooley, filled the silent void of the room.

“Hey, what’s up?” Tup tried to sound positive, hoping his friends and boyfriend wouldn’t call him out on it. But the stubborn-ass 104th trooper most likely wouldn’t give up too easily. He could see that the others noticed he didn’t look well.

“We were kinda bored and we knew you and the 501st were stuck on Coruscant for a little while so we decided to check up on you,” Zeke spoke next, leaning against what seemed like a wall.

Tup shrugged. “I’m fine.” He met eyes with Comet for a split second, then he avoided his gaze. Within that brief moment, he saw Comet’s worried and sympathetic eyes and it made him feel like crap for some reason. 

Tup zoned out for a minute, and Zeke, Jake, and Wooley started a conversation, and Tup couldn’t care to decide whether it was an argument or a normal civil conversation. The youngest teenager could feel his boyfriend’s gaze on his skull but he ignored it. He remembered how broken he had felt when Comet came to see him the first time since the incident.

He was still broken. If not even more.

“Babe, look at me,” Comet interrupted his friends. The others went silent and stared at their youngest friend.

Tup just noticed that tears started to stream down his face and quickly wiped them away. “I’m fine,” He snapped, mostly frustrated at himself.

“Tup, I won’t ask again.” Comet’s voice was sharp but he needed Tup to listen to him. Tup’s eyes flicked to him in annoyance, staring at his boyfriend.

“Wait, why is he upset?” Wooley asked, switching between looking at the couple. 

Comet sighed but kept eye-contact with Tup, asking the silent question of ‘can I tell them?’ 

Tup glanced at his friends before giving a small nod with a mumble of, “They’ll find out anyway.”

Comet relayed everything that happened with Tup’s over-the-top punishment and the effect it had on him. Jake had slapped a hand to his mouth in disbelief, feeling horrid for his friend. Zeke looked pissed. And Wooley looked concerned.

“Ponds would’ve never punished me like that. Sure, I mouth off sometimes, but he never physically hurt me," Zeke hissed.

Tup rolled his eyes, wanting to be done with this conversation. “Well, Zeke, it’s because I was his kid. That’s why.” Tup didn’t think about the way he worded his sentence. 

Zeke backed off, but Jake had a curious look on his face and then he said in a smaller voice than before. “...’ was’?” 

Tup didn’t hear him, but Wooley did. Wooley gave his blue-eyed brother a weird look before realizing what Jake was implying. “Tup…” Wooley got his attention.

“Yeah?” Tup sighed, feeling like he was going to get a health lecture from the medic.

“You said ‘I was’. What the hell does that mean?”

Tup froze. He clenched his jaw because he literally just outed himself. _Well, think of something you idiot_ , a small voice snapped at him in his head.

“You know what I meant,” Tup scrambled to come up with an answer and that’s what he went with. And Comet, the bastard, was leaving him to fend for himself.

Wooley frowned. “No, I don't, because normally that sentence would be in the present tense because you _are_ Fives and Rex’s kid, but you, Tup, used _‘was’_ which means you are talking in the past tense.” 

Tup hated how observant his brother was.

“Well, Tup, is there something else going on that you aren’t telling us?” Wooley’s voice was softer than it was five seconds ago.

“Fucking damn it,” Tup mumbled under his breath and dropped his head into his hands. “Well, maybe Wooley, if I said it in the past tense, that means that my so-called _‘parents’_ aren’t _that_ anymore. So drop it and leave it!" He hissed at the end, feeling a headache making itself known. 

Wooley looked at his youngest brother wide-eyed but hesitantly went onto a different topic with the others. Comet would jump in a few times but most of his focus was on Tup. And soon, mercifully for Tup, the call was over and Tup was left in silence. The teenager fell back onto the bed, covering his face with his hands, and took a shaking breath.

After a few minutes of thought, Tup stood and carefully walked out the door. Thankfully Rex and Fives were not in the room so Tup could walk out without a confrontation. As Tup roamed the halls he was debating going to see Kix in the medbay because he was sure the waterworks were going to start soon.

Tup turned a corner and ran right into another trooper, who had a fairly large build. Tup quickly stepped back away from the trooper, but a hand on his waist stopped him. Tup looked up then his heart started pounding.

“Hey, beautiful,” Chains greeted him with a smirk that was seductive, but Tup knew not to make the same mistake twice. 

He jumped away and practically sprinted down the hall, then he paused to lean against the wall, tears threatening to fall. Pieces of memories were coming back to him and slotting together, but not much. He needed Kix, now.

Tup blindly walked and entered the medbay. He took a quick glance and didn’t see Kix in the main hub of the medbay. He glanced over at the closest trooper; a familiar trooper from Fisto’s battalion, lying in a bed, and asked, “Where’s Kix?”

The older man nodded to a door towards the back. “He went back there a few minutes ago. But kid, you okay?”

Tup nodded to get him off his back, trying to push the tears back until he reached his older brother. He guessed that the other medics could visibly see he was upset and was looking for Kix and that’s why they didn’t stop him.

Tup walked into the back room and saw Kix sitting at a desk that the medics did paperwork on while on Coruscant. 

“K-Kix,” Tup called, voice wavering.

Kix turned with his brow furrowed, then he realized it was his baby brother who was the one calling him. The medic swiftly stood up and stepped right in front of Tup. 

“Hey hey hey, kiddo. Breathe, breathe.” 

Tup gasped for air and threw himself in Kix’s arms. 

Expecting the action, Kix held him close to his chest, cradling his head with one hand. “Easy, easy. I’ve got you. You’re safe; you’re with me.”

Tup cried into his chest, gripping Kix’s waist tightly. He got into Kix’s personal space, seeking safe harbor. 

“Shhhh, you’re okay sweetie, I’ve got you,” Kix whispered in his ear, tracing his brother’s spine. He felt his brother’s rapid heartbeat against his own chest and tsked in sympathy. “Tup’ika, breathe for me. Alright? Try to breathe deeply.” 

Tup buried his face in Kix’s neck and struggled to breathe. He hardly noticed Kix saying sweet-nothings in his ear, trying to calm him down. It was just….silence to him. His world was just falling apart around him and he didn’t know how to stop it.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, y'all sorry this is a day late. This chapter took longer than expected. This chapter was a big one and it had a lot of info, so if you have any questions just drop them in the comments, and I will answer unless it involves spoilers (nice try). I know you guys probably want to kill me, but you might want to save it.....have fun next week. 💙
> 
> Beta reader/Editor-AngelWars (Ao3). She can take all the credit for the club scene, she did it much better than I ever could.
> 
> What do you think?


	47. Chapter 47-Fifty Shades of Pain (Pt. 3)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More problems arise...and they partially end in dramatic fashion.
> 
> Warnings: Major assault of a minor, scenes depicting major anxiety, depression, and other trigger topics (self-harm). Major triggering (suicide attempt) event at the end of the chapter. Read at your own discretion.

Tup was trailing behind some of his brothers from the main battalion, staring at the ground. A few tried talking to him, and he really did try to make conversation with them because he loved his brothers, but his heart wasn’t in it. So Tup dropped back behind them unaware of the trooper that kept looking back at him.

Suddenly a hand covered Tup’s mouth and he jolted up. Tup tried to rip the handoff of his mouth but he couldn’t get any leverage because he was being dragged backward. A door opening met his ears and he struggled to get away, not wanting to know what was behind that door.

He was practically thrown into a supply closet and his back was slammed against the wall from the force of the throw. Tup groaned lightly, hand ghosting to his shoulder blades. 

Tup glared at the person then he felt nothing but fear. There was Chains, leaning casually against the wall. The teenager resumed his glare, not in the mood for games.

“Chains, let me out of this room or I swear to gods, you will regret it,” Tup hissed at him.

Chains just chuckled, like Tup was the cutest thing he had ever seen. “Oh come on, don’t be like that, darling.”

Tup crossed his arms. “I suggest you refrain from calling me ‘darling’.”

Chains cocked an eyebrow, enjoying that Tup was being feisty. “You were fine with it the other day when you asked me to kiss you.”

Tup shivered at that and stared at him. “Stop it.” Tup’s voice was shaky and quiet.

“Why? I can see you’re still upset about the Captain and the ARC. I don’t know why you let them stress you out when they aren’t your guardians anymore.”

Tup’s honey eyes shot up to his. “S-seriously, cut it out.”

“No. They don’t love you. If they loved you, they wouldn’t have punished you.”

Tup started crying mutely, feeling his walls being broken down by such an asshole of a person. “S-stop.”

Chains backed the teenager into a wall and kissed him. If Tup and he were a couple, it would’ve been intimate, but that definitely wasn’t the case. Tup tried to push Chains away but he didn’t have the strength or will to do so.

Chains slipped a knee between Tup’s thighs and started to rock lightly against the teenager. Tup whined and tried to push him away. If it were Comet, Tup would’ve melted immediately but Chains is  _ not _ Comet.

“Stop it. Stop it. I swear-” Tup attempted to kick him but nothing was working and he was panicking.

Chains kissed him again, making the words stop. Tup was crying, tears falling down his face. Tup tilted his head away and mumbled, “Please stop. Please Chains. Just leave me alone.”

Chains gripped his chin gently and Tup felt disgusting. “Shhhhhh, baby, just let it happen.”

Tup struggled again, trying to kick, punch, and do everything to get out of his hold but Chains’ grip was too intense.

Chains’ hand traveled down every inch of Tup’s body, and his sexual intentions were apparent. Tup just realized the Chains might….

Almost as if Chains heard his thoughts, he whispered in his ear, “Don’t worry, I’ve gotta save some of the fun for another time.” Tup didn’t know whether to be relieved or not.

Tup also didn’t know how long he was in the closet with Chains. He couldn't care to remember. He blindly stumbled back to the barracks. He felt guilt course through him as he saw Kix anxiously pacing in the rec room with Jesse sitting on the couch. If Tup looked hard enough, Fives and Rex also looked anxious.

Echo straightened up when the teenager came into view. “Tup!”

Kix sighed shakily, then fixed him with a glare. “Tup, what the hell, kid? We didn’t know where the hell you were.”

Tup felt tears bubble in his throat, feeling numb. “S-sorry. I didn’t mean to….”

Kix gave in and yanked Tup into a hug. “Just….just don’t do it again. It would be pretty sad if I lost you  _ inside _ of the barracks,” Kix joked lightly.

Tup nodded into his neck, praying that he wouldn’t burst into tears; seeing as he was very emotionally unstable. Tup met eyes with Fives and Rex over Kix’s shoulder. The teenager was tempted to smile at them but he couldn't bring himself to do it. 

Rex sighed, not breaking eye-contact, and slightly mouthed to him, ‘I’m sorry.’

Tup just looked at him, then he ducked his head into Kix’s shoulder. Tup just hoped Chains would leave him alone now. 

….

Chains didn’t leave him alone at all. Anytime Tup was away from Torrent he felt Chains slide up to and try to seduce him, but Tup always brushed up close to literally anyone else for protection.

The second time it happened, Chains cornered him into the very back of the giant ‘fresher. Chains kissed him roughly, sliding his tongue into Tup’s mouth. While he did, he rocked a hand against Tup’s member and moaned when Tup yelped.

“Fuck, you’re adorable with those puppy eyes of yours,” Chains groaned low in his ear, grinding against him.

Tup openly cried, hoping someone would hear him and come see what was happening, but no one did.

Time blurred together as the third time came along. Tup could barely remember what happened but this time Chains actually jerked off to his sobs in the privacy of a very dark closet. Tup wanted to scream but his vocal cords failed him. His body was pushed against the wall as Chains pressed his whole body against him, whispering filthy things to him, and he made it clear Tup would regret it if he told anyone.

The fourth time was clearer but nothing horrible happened. Well, it was terrible, yes, but Tup would take small miracles. All Chains did was kiss him and made sure Tup knew he was his and his only. He eventually brought up Comet though and Tup just tuned everything out.

That night, while Tup was lying down, curled up close to Jesse’s chest, he prayed for his suffering to end. Even if his brain made him forget most of it, it couldn't take the trauma away.

….

Tup stared down at his morning ration. He couldn't find it in himself to take a bite or even open the damn wrapper. The thought of doing such a thing made him feel nauseous. 

Jesse and Kix were sitting at the same table as him, chatting like crows, going on and on about something hilarious that Hardcase did last night. 

Tup eavesdropped because he honestly didn't want to focus on anything else and he learned that Hardcase tried to stuff something large into his mouth and see if he could breathe around it. It didn't work at all. Kix had to dislodge the object from Hardcase's mouth because the heavy gunner couldn't get it out of his throat by himself. Afterward, Kix had to check his throat for any muscle damage, then he scolded him. 

Tup would've giggled at the story but he couldn't find it in himself to do that either. He felt terribly empty. His stomach was always in twisted knots, like a rope was getting wrapped around and around a rock, tighter and tighter until it crushed the rock. Sometimes it felt like he was chained up to a giant stone and was tossed into a deep, dark ocean, symbolizing his suffering and internal self-loathing, as he sunk deeper into it. 

He sighed, trying to get rid of the heavy sensation in his chest, but it wouldn't go away. So, Tup leaned forward and rested his chin on top of his crossed arms. He looked up for one second and met eyes with someone that made his stomach churn harder. 

Chains. He was sitting at a table far away from Tup's. His golden eyes were filled with hunger and enjoyment.

Tup clenched his jaw and looked away, nibbling on his lower lip. He had this bad taste in his mouth; acidic and nauseating. His breathing picked up slightly, which he tried to hide in the crook of his elbow. Tup gulped in the air as his eyebrows knitted together.  _ Go away. Go away. Please. Stop looking at me like that. Go away,  _ Tup pleaded, closing his eyes. Praying.  _ Stars, please make him go away. Please. I don't want this anymore. I can't take this. Just make him go away. Go away, go away, go away, go away, go away, go away- _

"Tup?" A voice called to his left. 

Tup tensed up, spooked by the voice. He slowed down his breathing to a minimum, hiding his panic. 

"Kid, you okay?" Jesse asked. 

Tup nodded with a jerk. "Yeah, just…" He opened his mouth, trailing off.

He thought about telling Jesse what was happening, that a creepy man was staring at him, had been touching him inappropriately for almost an entire week now, but Tup remembered the growled threat, a threat to make him hurt badly for telling. He didn't want to hurt. He didn't want to feel more pain. So he kept silent. 

"Never mind," Tup mumbled, looking away to stare at the wall on his right. 

Jesse nodded slowly, eyes narrowing in concern. He could sense something was up. 

"If you say so," Jesse said, slowly turning back to his conversation with Kix. 

Tup heard Kix ask what happened, but Jesse only shrugged and said, "He said it was nothing."

The couple shifted off into another conversation topic. Tup hid his face into his right arm again, tears slowly creeping down his cheeks. 

… 

Tup just finished training with Torrent and the main battalion and was still pumped full of adrenaline. He sparred with Jesse this time around and he wanted to keep going, pouting when he found out that they were done. 

Jesse chuckled and looked at him. "Come on, kiddo. You must be tired."

Tup shook his head. "Nope. I want to keep going."

"Well, I hate to break it to ya, but I don't. I'm tired and need to take a  _ longggg  _ nap,” Jesse said, tossing his towel over his shoulder. "Ask Kix if he'll stay with you." Jesse walked over to the medic who was standing by the double doors to the room and patted his right shoulder twice. 

Kix looked at Tup's puppy face and smiled apologetically. "Aw, I'm sorry kid, but I'm going to say no this time. I am tired too."

Tup frowned.  _ Of course, no one wants to stay with me. Hmph. Why did I think they wouldn't?  _ Tup hid his distaste very well and put on a fake smile. "Oh, that's fine! I'll just…stay here by myself for another hour or something. I'll catch you guys later!" He waved goodbye and walked back over to the far wall and hung his towel on the beam bolted to it.

"Are you sure?" Kix asked. 

"Yeah, yeah," Tup answered, not turning to face them again. 

Jesse and Kix watched him prepare to continue his training. Their instincts told them to stay with the kid, but Tup did say he'd be fine. So, the two adults shrugged and left with the others. 

Tup glanced over his shoulder, silently watching as they left. His eyes drooped and his eyebrows turned down. The teenager turned his attention to the punching bags on the other side of the room and smiled.  _ It's fine. I'll get stronger this way anyways!  _ Tup stopped in front of the punching bag and smiled, getting into position. He raised his right arm in front of his face and jabbed forward. 

"Ah!" Tup grunted.

Jesse leaned half of his weight against Kix's shoulder as they walked side by side. The lieutenant smiled at him and whispered something about getting a nice massage from his  _ riduur _ . Kix chuckled and kissed his cheek, promising a really good one in the 'fresher.

Behind them, Chains walked, mind somewhere else at the moment. Many of his brothers broke off from the group and went in different directions. Some headed up to the mess near the front of the facility. Others went to their rooms. Chains  _ was _ planning on going outside, but he suddenly had…other plans. 

The trooper's eyes flicked left and right, checking to see if anyone was watching. He broke off from the group soon after and went down a completely different hallway. 

Tup slammed his knuckles into a leather bag with enough force to bruise. He smiled viciously and tried again, punching and grunting at the same time. He kept going at it. He was vibing so hard that he didn't hear the doors to the room opening. It was when he heard a soft chuckle two minutes later he twisted around to see who was there. 

Tup’s heart stopped.  _ Chains.  _ Tup bit his lower lip. He was all alone. Nobody else was here. It made him feel nervous. That look on Chains' face told Tup everything he needed to know. He was watching Tup punch the bag. He watched him for who knew how long. And he looked like he was enjoying it...not in a friendly way.  _ No. Not again. I have to get out of here!  _ Tup thought in alarm. 

Tup looked at the nearest door, which was across the room, and sprinted over to it. He heard pounding footsteps behind him and all the air was pushed out of his lungs by a sharp, strangled scream of panic. He was scared for his life. 

Just as he was about to reach the door and escape, Chains reached him and slammed one hand into the wall on the left side of Tup's face, too close for comfort, and one onto the door lock. Tup flinched and gulped. A little squeak came out of his throat. He was facing the wall. His back to Chains. 

"Hehe. Where are you going, princess?" Chains asked, looking straight ahead. 

Tup tensed up and continued to stare forward, not wanting to see Chains. He sensed movement on the right side of his body and slowly looked over. Chains was typing in a lock code for that door specifically. Tup closed his eyes and trembled. He already knew what Chains wanted. He wanted to use his body again…for pleasure. For his own personal gain. 

A big hand grabbed Tup's left shoulder and forcefully turned him around. Tup yelped, banging the back of his head against the wall. He panted hard, staring up at Chains. Chains' eyes were lecherous. 

"Please, I don't want to do this again. Pl-" Tup was cut off by a pair of lips against his; chapped and disgusting. A tongue pushed its way into his mouth, which he tried so hard to push back out but he couldn't. 

Chains broke the kiss—if you could even call it that—and gazed into his eyes. "I've been watching you train all fucking day and I just couldn't keep my hands off of you any longer," Chains chuckled darkly, leaning forward to brush his lips against Tup's ear. 

Tup flinched away, but not by much.

"I am so happy that you decided to stay behind. I don't know what I would've done otherwise if you hadn't. Maybe I would've gone back to my bunk room and…" Chains slowly trailed his hands down Tup's chest, making the teenager shiver unwillingly. "Touch _ myself~"  _ Chains whispered the last part. 

Tup twisted his head away and glared at the ceiling. He didn't want to hear this disgusting fiend talk like that about him. He didn't want to hear the lust and heat in his voice. It held no passion. It held no true love for him. It held nothing but greed and malice. Nothing that Tup had sensed in Comet's flirtatious and teasing voice. Tup missed him dearly. 

Tup's face suddenly snapped to the side. He gasped, feeling a sharp sting blossom in his right cheek. A red hand mark covered it. Tup huffed in shock, not having seen that coming. A hand came up and roughly pulled his hair out of its lazy bun, letting it all drape out over his shoulders. 

"You answer me when I am talking to you! You look at me when I am talking to you! And you show appreciation, you little slut! Do you understand me?" Chains growled dangerously, glaring knives at the teenager. 

He grabbed Tup's face and forced him to look up, squeezing his chin and cheeks between his fingers so hard that Tup immediately started to choke up and cry. 

Chains frowned and let go of his chin. "Shhhh. I'm sorry for yelling,  _ baby~  _ Here. Let me make it up to you and apologize the best way I know how." Chains grabbed Tup's chin and forced him into yet another wet kiss.

The kiss was long and full of tongue. Tup kept his eyes squeezed shut as he immediately started to imagine himself not here. He took himself out of his body and let himself float away for a little. It always worked. Then, whenever he came back, it was all over. 

The kisses moved on from his wet lips to his chin and face. Chains aggressively rubbed his armor against Tup's, wanting more friction. He wanted the armor out of the way. His hands busied themselves down below, taking off his armor's buckles and straps. Then Chains froze, thinking for a few seconds. He started moving again, deciding that he wanted to save going further for a later time again, already planning on prolonging this into the future. So, instead, Chains began to undress Tup, stripping him of his armor. He wanted to taste more skin. 

Tup groaned and squeezed his eyes shut. He hated this. He hated his body. It reacted on its own.  _ Why am I enjoying this? No…no, no, my body is. Not me. I am not enjoying this at all! I am not enjoying this!  _ But Tup couldn’t help but wonder if he truly did. His mind was playing tricks on him, telling him he did like it, making him feel guilty. He did not want to like this. Not at all. 

Tup growled low and jerked his elbow up to hit Chains, but Chains blocked it and slammed his head back against the wall again. 

"Do that again and I won't hesitate in hurting you," Chains threatened, yanking off Tup's armor and tossing it to the floor with a clang. "I am not afraid of doing it. Don't forget. I will hurt you if I need to to keep you in line."

Tup whimpered and closed his eyes again when he felt his arm get pushed back down to his side.  _ I can't escape. I tried. I…I can't…he's much stronger than I am.  _ Tup whimpered and closed his eyes, hoping that it ends soon.  
  


… 

Comet dashed down the hallway with a smile on his face. He and the 104th just arrived back on Coruscant. He wanted to say hello to Tup and cuddle him and tell him how much he was loved. The teenager came around a corner and nearly ran into what looked to be Torrent. 

"Oh, hey guys!" Comet greeted them with a cute smile that brought out his dimples. 

Fives perked up at the sight of him, then nearly shrank into himself when Comet looked at him and Rex. Kix stepped forward and smiled at Tup's boyfriend.

"Hello Comet," He said with a wave. 

"It's nice to see your face again!" Jesse said, placing his hand on his hip.

Comet chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck. "Heh. Yeah."

"So, the 104th is finally back?" Rex found the courage to ask. 

Comet looked at him. "Yeah."

"For how long?" Jesus asked. 

"Oh, I hope it's for a while!! I want to challenge Boost and Ace!" Hardcase yelled, fist-pumping the air, eyes shimmering with excitement. "They owe me a spar!"

Comet laughed and gave Hardcase a thumbs up. "I'm sure they'll want to spar, Hardcase. They're heading towards our bunk so you can catch up to them if you try,” He told him. Then he looked over the others’ shoulders and frowned. 

"Oh…where's Tup?" 

Kix perked up. "He's in the sparring room. He stayed behind to continue training himself. Heh."

"Ah, well, he's got himself a partner now. I'm going to go now! Catch you guys later!" Comet bid farewell and ran in that direction with a grin on his face. 

Jesse and the others chuckled to themselves and continued, enjoying the sight of youthful happiness. 

Comet reached the training room doors in no time. The doors opened and he ran in with his eyes closed. He skirted to a stop and panted, leaning his hands on his knees. 

"Hey, Tup! I'm-" Comet opened his eyes and froze. The world stopped around him. 

There, right in front of him, pushed against the wall, and…and kissing  _ someone else,  _ was Tup. Comet's heart slowed down. He couldn't believe this. Tup's eyes were closed as another man kissed him roughly. 

It made Comet's blood boil. 

"T-Tup…" Comet exhaled. 

Tup opened his eyes. They widened in shock when they landed on Comet's shaking form.

Tup's eyes filled with tears as he gasped. 

"C-Comet…" 

The man backed up and looked over his shoulder at Comet.  _ "Ohhh~ _ Is this your boyfriend? How quaint."

Tup sniffled and walked towards Comet, ready to explain the whole situation, but Comet wiped his tears away and shook his head fervently. Comet turned around and ran out of the room. Tup's mouth remained agape. Hand outreached. Eyes staring at the spot Comet used to be in. 

"C-Comet! Comet please, wait!" Tup yelled, running out of the room after him. 

Chains all but watched with a smile on his face as the door closed behind Tup. 

Tup ran to catch up with Comet and stood in front of him with tears in his eyes. “Comet please-”

“Don’t you fucking talk to me,” Comet said through gritted teeth. He tried to push past Tup but Tup had a vice grip on his wrist. 

“I swear it wasn’t-”

“It wasn’t what?! You cheating on me? That it was just a mistake? Screw you," Comet growled again and continued to walk down the hall when Tup grip slacked. 

Tup felt fear coursing through him.  _ This can’t be happening. _

They were both crying as they started walking down the hall, their shouting increasing. They couldn’t give a damn if others in the building heard them.

“What the fuck, Tup?!" Comet yelled, sniffling as he walked. "So, is this what you do behind my back?”

Tup shook his head. “N-no! Please believe me!”

Comet stopped in the middle of the hallway and spun around to look at his….he didn’t know what the teenager was to him anymore. “How can I believe you?! I just walked in on you making out with another man while you know I’m away on a mission and you just expect me to believe you?!”

Even though Comet was screaming at him, Tup could see the tears in his eyes. “Com’ I  _ know _ it looks really bad-”

“Yes, yes it fucking does Tup!”

“Comet please!”

“No!” Comet got into Tup’s personal space and tried to reach for the teenager for some reason.

Tup jumped back, eyes wide in panic.

Comet threw his arms up in exasperation. “And now you’re scared of me! Why the hell did you jump away?”

" I-I don’t….I…" Tup stuttered.  _ Just tell him, you idiot! You’ve been molested and hurt for two weeks, and even if you're fighting with Comet right now, he still loves you enough to protect you. _

“He-I….” The words trailed off. Tup couldn’t do it. He couldn’t risk the embarrassment or the chance that Comet won’t believe him.

Comet was still fuming. “I cannot believe this! I give you the chance to explain and you can’t say anything! That proves you’re cheating!”

They both heard a door open but they didn’t turn to look. They continued shouting, mostly Comet, but Tup was also getting frustrated. He looked over Comet’s shoulder and caught a glimpse of his abuser. Chains was propped up against a wall, smirking at the scene in front of him.

_ That son of a bitch _ , Tup thought angrily. “Comet-”

Comet just chuckled humorlessly and shook his head. “No. I thought you loved me, but I guess I was wrong.”

Tup’s heart broke. He placed his hand over his heart and whimpered, “I-I do love you. Babe-”

“Save it. And don’t call me ‘babe’ anymore,” Comet said brokenly, trembling hard.

“C-Co-”

“We’re done;  _ I’m _ done. Fuck you and go to hell.” With that, Comet turned his back on his ex-boyfriend and walked away from him. With every step, Comet took, Tup’s heart was breaking piece by piece. 

Tup started to cry softly, feeling someone come up behind him.

“Tup...?” Fives voice snapped him out of his semi-trace.

_ Fuck. _ Tup knew exactly where he and Comet just had their argument. Right in front of 501st barracks.

Tup ignored them as he walked into the room, not looking anyone in the eye whether they were in Torrent or in the main battalion. Kix tried to reach for him but Tup stepped away and said, “Don’t touch me.” He opened the door into the bunk room and locked it. Next, he quickly changed the override code, knowing it would buy him some time before Hardcase would figure it out. 

Instead of curling up in Jesse's and Kix’s bunk, he went over to his own bed; for the first time in about a month. He pulled the covers back, took off his armor, and sunk into the bed. He pulled the blankets over his head. The memory of Fives having a breakdown in the ‘fresher after he and Rex broke up popped into his mind. Now Tup could understand what Fives had felt during that terrible time.

And Tup hated it too. 

….

Comet didn’t stop walking until he reached his barracks. Only the Wolfpack were scattered around the rec room so Comet assumed their other brothers were in their bunk room.

“Comet, what’s wrong?” Blitz asked from where he was leaning against Ace.

Comet shook his head not wanting to get into it. “Nothing.”

“Kid, you don’t cry often, so spill.” Wolffe’s voice was calm and grounding to the teenager. 

“Don’t….please," Comet begged, curling up on the couch furthest away from his older brothers. Arks was looking him up and down, seeing if his ailment was physical.

“Comet,” Wolffe’s tone raised at the end, giving Comet a warning.

“Stop, Wolffe. Please.”

“Don’t make me pull rank, pup,” Wolffe threatened. 

“Grrr! Tup cheated on me and we broke up!!” Comet finally yelled, pissed off, making everyone shut up. “Are you happy now?!” The tears started falling again.

“Oh, pup….” Blitz cooed, moving to sit next to the teenager. 

Comet latched onto his brother and let him hold him close. He buried his face in the junction of Blitz’s shoulder, sobs racking his body. 

“Shhhhh, shhhhhh. I know, I know.” Blitz stroked Comet’s hair lightly. “I’m sorry, kiddo.”

Comet curled closer to his brother, soaking up his warmth and comfort. He didn’t look at Wolffe, knowing he would see a pissed look in his eye. Even if they broke up, Comet didn’t want Wolffe to punch Tup.

“Why would he do this?” Comet asked no one in particular. 

“ _ We don’t know, kid. Things happen and sometimes people make mistakes. The sad truth is that not all relationships can last. People do stupid things that could cost the relationship, _ ” Arks told him, making sure the teenager had been looking at him before he started to sign.

Wolffe knocked his shoulder against Arks,' arm tightening around the medic. “Arks is right. I’m sorry things had to end the way they did, but maybe it’s for the best.” Arks nodded and leaned against the Commander, curling closer to his warmth, a small smile appearing on his face. 

Comet just cried into Blitz’s shoulder, feeling like a piece of him had been ripped away. He never wanted to see Tup again.

  
...  
  


Tup was pulled from sleep by someone shaking his shoulder. He cracked his eyes open, numbly looking up at his brother. Kix was kneeling next to him, stroking his shoulder.

“It’s time to eat, kiddo,” Kix quietly told him, ignoring his brother's whispering, probably about him being nice to Tup.

Tup stared up at him. “Why do you care? I know that the others don’t.”

Kix frowned. “They still care, Tup. Even though you made a mistake, I still give a damn about you.” Kix made his voice softer. Tup still didn't acknowledge him. Kix sighed and nodded. “I’m guessing you want to stay here? I can bring something back for you to eat if you want.”

Tup shook his head. “I’m not hungry.”

Kix already knew it was going to be a tough few weeks. “Alright, kiddo….let me know if you change your mind.”

Kix stood up and walked over to where his husband was standing. Jesse frowned, reading his husband’s body language.

The medic answered without Jesse asking, “He’s refusing food. He’s already scaring me.” 

Jesse couldn’t say anything to ease his mind so he just pulled Kix close to his side.

Echo and Hardcase walked right past their little brother, not knowing how to feel. But Rex stopped in front of his kid's— _ Tup’s _ bunk and put a light hand on his back before walking away. Tup just stared at him as he walked away, not knowing why Rex’s gesture was meant to be comforting instead of mean. He had done nothing to deserve comfort, especially from them.

Tup turned to face the other side of the room, pulling the covers up higher to hide his tears even though no one was in the room.

_ I deserve this...I deserve all of this. _

….

Tup was still numb by the third day. He had refused to move from his bunk, to eat or drink anything, and he cried silently every night. Kix hated every second of it because it was one thing for Tup to be doing all of that while he was in bed with him and Jesse, it was another thing to do it on his own.

Tup watched as everyone walked into the bunk room, showered and cleaned, and he buried himself under because he didn't deserve to come back out and look anyone in the eyes. He felt like they were staring into his soul otherwise. The teenager heard the door shut. 

When he heard no more footsteps, he turned over and stared at the wall to his left. The room was dark. Not a peep was made. That meant everyone was falling asleep. Tup calmed down his breathing and closed his eyes. 

Seconds turned minutes and minutes turned into hours. Tup managed to get drowsy and fell asleep. These days, Tup's dreams always started off with everything being normal. Everything was good. Then it all changed with a snap of a finger. One minute he was cuddling Comet, smiling up at him and everything, then Comet vanished, like dust in the wind. 

Tup sat up and looked around, wondering where he had gone. He looked around and realized that Comet was nowhere to be found, even his family was gone. His brothers. Fives and Rex. Jesse and Kix. Each and every one of them just up and gone.

Tup stood up from the couch he sat on and called out for them, but no one answered. He turned his back to the double doors for a second and began to panic. He didn't know what to do. Then a voice came from behind him. Tup turned around and saw Comet standing there, back to him. 

"Comet? Comet, what the…where is everyone?" Tup asked his boyfriend.

Comet shrugged, not looking at Tup. "Not sure."

"What do you mean 'you're not sure?' They were just here…and you! You were right… Right next to me." Tup pointed at the couch and faltered, not enjoying the dead silence he was receiving. It was off-putting and he wanted it to stop.

"Babe, you are scaring me…" Tup trailed off, hugging himself. 

Comet perked up and smiled, which Tup couldn't see. "’ Babe’?" He asked, finally turning around to face Tup. 

Tup exhaled wetly and nodded. "Y-Yeah-"

"Seriously…are you serious right now, Tup? ‘Babe’? How could you still be hung up on that title like that? Huh? How could you sit there and call me that after what  _ you  _ did?" Comet asked, glaring at him. 

Tup bit his lower lip. He remembered something, something that he told himself multiple times before he went to bed. This was all a dream. He was aware of the fact that he had some weird dreams and had to remain self-lucid. That's what Kix always told him. But his dreams always turned into nightmares; wildly hallucinatory ones. 

"Not gonna talk, huh? Not going to defend yourself?" Comet asked, fists clenched, shaking by his side. He uncurled his fists and chuckled, "Of course you won't. Because you know you were wrong."

Tup shook his head. "Please, I didn't…I didn't cheat on you…on  _ him!"  _ Tup switched up, knowing this was a dream-version of Comet.

Comet's twin barked out laughing, tilting his head back. "Hahahaha! You must be joking? Actually, you know what? It's a terrible joke. It's not fucking funny." 

Comet walked forward. Tup took a step back. 

"Still afraid of me?" Comet asked. 

Tup shook his head. Comet took another step forward. Tup stepped back. He regretted doing that. He had to explain why he kept backing up. 

"I'm afraid of you, but not Comet. You aren't Comet. I fell for your tricks twice already. I-I won't fall for them again!" Tup said with a shaky voice. 

Comet stopped walking towards him and chuckled, smiling. "Yeah…you say you'll stop falling for them." He started to walk towards Tup again. 

Tup backed up until his back was nearly against the couch. He had nowhere else to go. Hands clawed their way out of the floor before grabbing a hold of his ankles and tightening. 

Tup yelled and struggled, breath picking a slight bit.  _ No. No. Don't lose control. Don't worry. It's okay. It's okay. It's not real. I-It-It's not r-real. God, it's not real,  _ He reminded himself. 

Comet got into Tup's personal space and grinned. "You say that it's easy to forget. You say that you won't listen to me anymore. But you are wrong." Comet circled Tup and looked at him in a way that only the real Comet would look at him, with a flirty gaze that could make Tup melt where he stood. But now it was only haunting to see on this double. 

Comet came up on Tup's blind spot, just on his right, but behind his right ear, and he whispered raspily, "But you'll never be able to escape me." His voice changed. It was deeper. Heavy. Raspy. Not filled with that youthful lull it always held or that fiery spirit of his whenever he was angry. 

"N-No," Tup gasped sharply, struggling against the hands. No good. He was stuck. 

Chains circled back around to face Tup again and laughed, "Oh-oh-ohhh, yes! Baby! I am back!" 

Tup shook his head fervently. Tears pricked his eyes. "S-Stop. Stop. Go away."

"Goodness, Tup,” Chains snickered. “I thought we already established that I can't go away. I'll never go away. I'll just keep. Coming. Back until you understand that you," Chains held up a finger and tilted Tup's chin up. Tup sobbed. "my darling, are  _ mine.  _ You always will be."

Tup trembled, breathing faster than before. 

Chains stepped back and continued to laugh masochistically. His arms outstretched on either side of him. Black, inky hands shot out of the floor, ceiling, and walls, and wrapped themselves around Tup's limbs, holding him still. They forced his legs open. Tup cried out for help, not feeling comfortable with this position. 

"Help! Somebody help me!" Tup cried out for help, nostrils flaring. He couldn’t breathe. He was suffocating. 

The hands started to crawl up his arms and legs like sentient, inky creatures. The ones on his legs kept touching him in inappropriate places. They squeezed his thighs, giving his ministrations he did not ask for. They eventually made their way up to his crotch and covered that too, tearing his blacks apart a little there. Tup squeaked, feeling the cold against nude skin. The ones on his arms reached his neck and crawled their way up to his face until they came up to his nose and covered him there too. 

Tup took in his last breath before the hands fully went over it. He started to choke and scream, clawing at the black mass. The mass separated, torn apart by his hands, but it kept coming back thicker than the last time.  _ I can't breathe. I can't breathe! I-I ca-can-cant! Stop! H-Help!  _

Tup stared through the little peepholes the black mass gave him and watched Chains smile at him as he disappeared into the black mass that had covered the entire room. The hands continued to grope and mess with his body. He felt violated. Chains was right, there was no escape. He'd keep coming back every single time, whether it was in reality or in his dreams. 

Tup would never escape. 

Kix opened his eyes when his sharp ears picked up the sounds of wheezing and panicked muttering. At first, he thought he was still dreaming. But then he thought,  _ why would I dream about someone crying? Something's wrong!  _ So Kix slowly sat up and squinted through the darkness, waiting for his eyes to adjust. Over on the other side of the room, clearly having a nightmare, was Tup. Tup was curled up tightly under his blankets. A trembling mess. His teeth even chattered as if he were cold. 

"Kix, what's going on?" Jesse asked, sitting up too. 

"Something's up with Tup. Nightmare, probably,” Kix told him, swinging his legs over the side of his bed. 

Jesse moved with him. Kix sat on the edge of his bed and watched Tup, not liking the way the kid kicked the blankets and rolled onto his back, whimpering and whining. 

The medic wanted to go over and wake up the poor kid, but Tup made it very clear two days ago that he didn't want Kix or Jesse to worry over him. Kix knows why he didn't want help because he believed he didn't deserve help, but the kid looked feverish all the way over here. 

"We gotta help him somehow,” Kix mumbled, ready to spring into action when Tup's breathing quickened. 

Jesse nodded in agreement. "I getcha. I do too. Maybe we just sit and watch him…fuck, I hate it."

"Me too. But he'll get mad at us or freak out if we go over there," Kix told him, sitting to lean his back against the headboard. 

Jesse laid back down but he faced Tup's bed and stared at him, watching silently.

This went on for quite some time, resulting in Tup not calming down and whining a bit louder than before, hyperventilating even, kicking more at his blankets. 

Hardcase groaned in his sleep. Echo slammed his pillow over his head and gritted his teeth. 

"Shut up," Hardcase growled under his breath. 

Fives sat up in his bed and was about to go over and check on Tup but Kix stopped him from doing so by waving his arms. Fives looked at Kix with a look of confusion and raised an eyebrow. Kix shook his head and tucked his legs up close to his chest. Fives grumbled something under his breath and failed to fight his parental instincts. He walked over to Tup's bed anyway. 

Kix face palmed himself and gritted his teeth. "Are you kidding me?" He asked no one in particular, about to get up and go retrieve Fives and make him go away, but Jesse stopped him. 

"Look. Look, Kix," Jesse said, pointing over at Fives and Tup. 

Fives stared at the kid struggling to breathe and sighed. Fives took a couple of steps back and sat on the floor with his back against an empty bunk bed. He sat there and continued to watch over Tup, not making a single sound. 

Kix stared in awe. 

"Heh. That's Fives for ya," He said, leaning back against the headboard again. "Hopefully Tup calms down. Poor kid."

Jesse nodded, silently praying. 

The nightmare went on for what felt like forever. It sounded horrific. Tup continued to cry, whine, and twist and turn in the blankets. It made Fives all the more nervous.

“Come on, Tup. Just wake up,” Fives whispered, wanting Tup’s suffering to end.

Thankfully, and unfortunately, at the same time, Tup woke up. He jerked away and shot up into a sitting position, panting heavily. The teenager braced his arms on the bed, staring at the sheets in silent horror. It was like he was looking through the bed.

Fives perked up, ready to move if necessary, whether it was to get closer to Tup or further away. The poor teenager was still shaking, tears dripping onto the sheets. Small cries reached Fives’ ears and he felt his heart snap. It took every fiber in his being to not yank Tup close.

Tup slowly looked to Fives and let his eyes fall shut with a whimper. The teenager moved so his legs dangled over the edge of the bed and he opened his broken honey eyes to look at Fives. Had he not been petrified from his dream, the teen would’ve shifted away from his previous guardian. 

Fives was scared Tup was going to tip forward, so he shifted up closer to the upset teenager on instinct. He started to lift a hand to put on Tup’s knee but decided against it. Tup, abandoning all memory, suddenly sank to the floor in front of Fives and dropped his head on Fives’ collarbone, shoulders shaking with every cry. Fives’ arms lifted slightly, frozen in time; unsure of what to do. He looked over his shoulder at his boyfriend with a gaze that read ‘tell me what to do. I’m scared.' He hadn’t touched Tup since Rex punished Tup.

Kix saw his younger brother’s hesitation and huffed, getting a chuckle out of his husband. “Hold him, you  _ di’kut _ . Honestly, you don’t hold him for two weeks and you automatically forget how to be parental.” 

_ Easy for you to say. You’re the one who has been comforting Tup the past couple of weeks with Jesse,  _ Fives grumbled in his head.

He slowly and carefully put his arms around Tup, afraid he would shatter under him. He shifted so he could see Rex in his peripheral view. Rex had the smallest smile on his face but it could also be a grimace too.

The ARC was scared to move, so fucking scared of screwing this up. This could be his only chance to make a bridge with Tup so he could still be in his life and not just as the person who  _ used _ to be his  _ buir _ . Fives took a breath and willed himself to stop thinking, which was pretty hard for him.

Fives found himself slightly rocking the teenager, hand pressing against the space between Tup’s shoulder blades, and lifted him closer to his chest, so Tup was in his lap. This was second nature to him. Comforting an upset child. He had just forgotten how to do it for a few minutes. No words were said; Fives didn’t want to push his luck with terms and words of endearment to the kid who was too unstable to handle it.

Rex laid back down, still facing his boyfriend and Tup, not taking his eyes off of them. This was the most normal it had been in weeks and he didn’t want Fives to let go of Tup.

Tup slowly calmed down to the beat of Fives’ heart, subconsciously nuzzling the ARC’s chest, hearing the familiar heartbeat. The steady sound lulled him into sleep against Fives’ front, too tired to remember what had happened between him, Fives, and Rex.

Fives looked down with a soft look on his face. He cringed as he stood up with Tup in his arms when his knees and ankles popped loudly as if the sound would wake the sleeping teenager. The ARC lowered the sleepy teen into bed, pulling the covers tenderly over his shoulders. The tear tracks were starting to dry as Fives took a seat next to him. He stayed there in the same position until he was sure Tup wasn't going to burst into tears at any second. Then Fives quietly left the bed and crawled back into his own with Rex. Rex opened his arms in an invitation to hold Fives close and Fives obliged him. 

The Captain's arms were strong and comforting around him as he tucked Fives’ head under his chin, taking his turn to watch over Tup even from two bunks away.

“You didn’t want to let him go, did you?" Rex asked the man against his chest as the thought came to mind. 

Fives shook his head easily. “I wanted to do nothing more than just squeeze him and not let him go for hours. But obviously, we can’t do that," Fives ended bitterly.

Rex tapped Fives' hip in a warning. “I understand. But you know we can’t push him to trust us. We’re lucky that he even got close to you tonight.”

“He’ll probably regret it in the morning," Fives added as an afterthought. 

Rex shook his head. “Don’t doubt him like that. That’s the worst thing we can do.”

Fives fell silent, then he angled his head to better rest on Rex’s shoulder. The captain let him move, loosening his arms before tightening them when he was done fidgeting.

“Love you.” Rex pressed a kiss to Fives' head before closing his eyes. 

Fives repeated it back and did the same with his tired golden orbs. As he fell into sleep, he kind of hoped that Tup would have another nightmare and crawl into their bed for comfort so they could hold him and try to take his pain away. But wishful thinking was the only thing Fives could do.

…

Within the next four days, Tup had completely closed off from everyone. He wouldn’t talk, wouldn’t respond if someone said his name, he didn’t even look at anything. But it was a two-way street. The others were starting to ignore him as well. A part of Tup was upset and felt rejected, but most of him was happy; he could suffer in self-pity alone. He wasn’t eating or drinking and that was starting to take a toll on his body, but Tup ignored the pain and the weight he was losing.

He stared up at the ceiling, mindlessly finger-combing his hair. He was too stir-crazy from laying in bed all day, so he quietly stood up from the bed and crossed over to the door. He opened it and didn’t notice Rex lift his head from his pillow. The captain blinked tiredly at Tup’s back but shrugged to himself and laid back down next to Fives.  _ He’ll be fine _ .

Tup left the barracks and started to aimlessly walk down the halls. He didn't know where he was going exactly. He just wanted to walk and clear his head, which was impossible, but he wasn't going to give up on at least trying. He decided to go one or two rounds around the ship and think about life and his decisions so far, then he was going to go right back to the bunk and sleep for the rest of the day. No, he was not going to eat lunch or dinner. He just didn't want to. Wasn't hungry.

Tup turned the corner and walked down a straight hallway, eyes on the floor. When a trooper walked by, Tup avoided eye contact. He was very sure that people found out about what happened between him and Comet. 

The reason why he suspected that people knew was that every time he was out of the bunk room people would stare at him like they were silently judging him or wondering why the heck it happened in the first place. 

Tup was also very sure that rumors were going around, brothers bouncing stories, their own versions of what happened, turning it into something that it wasn't. One thing that he could see happening from a million miles away was that everyone would, of course, defend Comet and be on his side. Tup felt like everyone was pissed off at him for, quote on quote, ‘hurting Comet,' and he did hurt him, just not in the way Comet or anyone else saw it. 

That was why he didn't leave the Torrent bunk lately. He didn't want to feel the stares from people and feel the burning shame grow in his chest. It was weird though because he knew deep down he didn't do anything wrong and that Chains forced him, but he was afraid of telling anyone. He was afraid they wouldn't believe a word he said now that he was known as a 'double-crossing cheater,' Hardcase's words, not his. 

Tup sighed heavily and turned another corner. He passed by two other troopers who deliberately glared at him. Tup's heart twinged in his chest.  _ I hope I finish this soon so I can go back to sleep. I just need to get my exercise and get these thoughts out of the way before anything else,  _ he thought, hitting the mid-way point in the hallway. 

Someone came around the corner at the other end of the hall and stopped. Tup didn't see them though. He kept his eyes down and chin lowered. The pounding sound of rapidly approaching feet was what made him look up. There was a blur and then a body rammed into him. One second he was in the dimly lit hallway, the next he was in a dark room that felt really small. The air was stale. There were walls on all four sides. And the door shut behind him. 

Tup trembled and patted his way across the walls, not understanding why he was put in here and who put him in here. Just as Tup was about to find the door, a body advanced on him and slammed him against the wall.

"Nuh-uh-uh," A masculine, raspy voice purred, tightening their grip on his wrists. 

"Ngh!" Tup grunted in pain. 

One hand moved up to his mouth and pressed against it. "Make a single fucking sound and I will knock you the fuck out. Do you hear me?" They hissed. 

Tup shivered harder when he realized who it was.  _ Chains. Fuck! Not again. Please, not again!  _

Chains grabbed Tup's chin and yanked it up. "I want you to tell me you understand! Say it!"

"Y-Yes! Yes, yes,” Tup yelped, tears stinging his eyes. 

The grip on his chin lessened after he said that. That was how it always had been; if he obeyed without argument or backtalk, Chains went easy on him. But today he sounded so  _ angry  _ that it scared the holy ghost out of Tup. 

Chains walked over to the door and pressed something on the wall. There was a soft click and then a dim light came on. Tup flinched and closed his eyes. The light only lit up the area closest to the door, but where Tup was, it was still a bit dark. 

Chains eyed him for a long time. His eyes practically glowed a fiery yellow, raging like a forest fire. The older man closed the distance between them again and surged forward, yanking Tup into a rough kiss that lacked the love that he would feel from Comet.

Tup nearly sobbed at the thought.  _ I'll never feel that true love again.  _

Chains placed a hand on the side of Tup's face and rolled his lips against Tup's, tasting him. Tup wanted to gag. He hated this taste. He never liked it, but Chains forced him to kiss him because it was what Chains wanted, never what Tup wanted. 

Chains bit Tup's lower lip, drawing blood. Tup squeaked, flinching away because it hurt. Chains licked the blood and grinned. He tried to kiss Tup again but all Tup did was turn his head. A grave mistake. Chains slapped Tup across the face and made him look at him. 

Tup opened his eyes and trembled harder. 

"No. This won't do. This won't do at all," Chain muttered with a venomous tone. He reached for the clasps on Tup's armor and immediately tore it off. "I had a terrible fucking day, ya know. Fucking always telling me what to do. Can't do shit anymore these days. Heh," Chains mumbled on about things that were not related to what was happening right here and now. 

He tossed Tup's chest plate and biceps plates to the floor. 

Tup closed his eyes and let him. There was nothing he could do. The last time he fought back, it earned him a black eye, which of course Kix noticed the second he saw Tup, but Tup played it off as he received it after someone pushed him into a door. Kix didn't believe him at first, but it did the trick. 

The top half of Tup's armor was gone by the time he stopped reminiscing. Chains growled at Tup’s blacks and rolled his eyes. 

"I don't have the patience for this," Chains huffed, taking a hold of the neckline of Tup's black shirt. 

Tup gasped when Chains tore his shirt in half and tossed it unceremoniously to the floor. The cold temperature of the room made Tup's nipples harden and goosebumps appear on his skin. Tup shivered and looked off to the side. Chains continued his dirty work, undressing Tup’s bottom half more roughly this time, yanking him forward or to the side. His actions were just as impatient and as ruthless as his personality and voice. 

Chains left Tup in only his boxers. He smiled and looked the teenager up and down. 

Tup subconsciously moved his hands down to hide his crotch and whimpered. Chains frowned deeply and yanked Tup's hands out of the way. After he did, he immediately touched his privates and squeezed them gently. 

Tup whimpered and shifted. Chains growled at him and surged forward, bringing him into a wet kiss while he continued the violating touches to Tup's body. His hands roamed freely without anyone stopping him. They touched Tup's shoulders, collarbone, chest, nipples, biceps, and arms, squeezing and drifting down, traveling to his small, toned abs, then his hands stopped at the waistband of Tup’s boxers. 

"Please stop. Please. I-"

Chains slammed Tup’s head back against the wall with a loud thud. Stars sparked behind Tup’s vision. He gasped in distress and blinked rapidly, feeling really dizzy. Chains wrapped his hand around his neck and squeezed ever so gently. 

"You don't tell me what to do, slut. You are going to be  _ quiet!"  _ With a final yell, Chains yanked Tup over to stand against a shelf on the other side of the room. 

Tup collided with it and groaned in pain, cold metal digging into his skin. Without preamble, Chains yanked Tup's boxers down and chuckled. 

"You have a nice ass. Ready for fucking," Chains 'complimented' him.

Tup's eyes flashed open when he heard that. "W-What?"

Chains' chin snapped up. "Did I say you could talk?"

Tup gulped and leaned heavily against the shelf. Chains raised a hand and slapped his ass. Tup jerked with a strangled shout. His fingers clenched the metal edges of the shelf. It creaked under them. 

"That's right. Silence. Better not hear another peep out of you or I won't be so gentle, got me?" Chains asked, taking off his own armor with the quickness. 

Tup cried softly. Hearing that God-awful sound of Chains’ armor being taken off sent waves of fear crashing through him. His heart sped up. Cold sweat made his skin clammy. And he felt sick to his stomach. 

Chains only took off his bottom armor. He needn't have to take off the top, which meant he was planning on making this quick. 

Tup shook with his sobs. He wanted to plead for mercy. He wanted to be spared this atrocious act. He didn't want to be the victim anymore. He wanted to disappear.

Soft gasps and panting sounds came from behind him. Chains was stroking himself, getting himself up to full hardness before he entered Tup. Tup opened his eyes and shivered.  _ I can escape now while he's distracted. I can leave and get outta here while I still can. But…but what if he catches me? He won't be lenient. He won't be kind. He'll hurt me worse than the other times. _

Chains grabbed Tup's hips and jerked him back, forcing him to arch his back and present his ass a little more. 

_ "Ah~"  _ Chains sighed softly, getting closer. He pressed the head of his cock against Tup's entrance and stroked himself again. 

Tup turned his head and closed his eyes.  _ Maybe it won't be s-so bad. Heh, y-yeah. Maybe it won't hurt,  _ He thought naively, hoping for the best in the worst circumstance-fucking-ever.

Chains pushed in and Tup's whole world shuttered to a stop. Well, it was definitely not what he was expecting. He gasped hard. His eyes bulged.  _ Oh my god. What the fuck?  _ Tup exclaimed internally.  _ What the fuck? It burns! Oh god, get out!!  _

Chains pushed further inside, stretching Tup open, pushing against a ring of muscle that was tight, causing Tup major discomfort. Tup whimpered and clambered for the shelf in front of him. 

"Goddamn! Fuck, you are tight as hell,” Chains groaned, laughing breathlessly. 

Tup closed his eyes and shook his head. 

Chains leaned forward, and asked, "Are you a virgin by any chance? You have a boyfriend or… _ had _ , heh. Did you guys have sex?"

Tup gritted his teeth.  _ None of your goddamn business, you freak!  _

Chains pursed his lips when he didn't get an answer, so he reached up, tangled his fingers in Tup's loosened hair, and yanked hard. 

"Ah!" Tup shouted in pain, jerking back. 

"I asked you a question! Answer it!" Chains ordered. 

Tup whimpered and bit his lip. It trembled under his teeth. "N-No…"

"No? So you never fucked?" Chains asked in a lewd way. 

Tup looked up at the ceiling and sobbed pitifully, wondering why this was happening to him. 

Chains looped a long piece of hair around his index finger and pulled gently. "Do I need to encourage you to answer in a different way? I am losing my patience."

Tup shook his head. He didn't want to talk to Chains anymore. Chains saw the head shaking and grinned devilishly. 

_ "Oh~  _ A virgin," Chains marveled, licking his lips. "My luck." And without warning, he drove himself fully, entering Tup in one fell swoop, taking his virgin seal without effort. 

"Ah!" Tup shouted in pain, jerking forward. Tears streamed down his face. Pain flared up his spine from its origin point. 

Chains placed a hand on Tup's back to keep him still and sighed, getting used to the tightness before he started to move. He put all his anger into his thrusts, violent and hard. Tup grunted with each one, feeling more pain lace through his sensitive muscles. Chains yanked Tup's hair back and slammed up into him. Tup groaned in pain, crying softly, resting his forehead against the edge of the bookshelf. 

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Fuck, baby. So fucking tight. So good for me," Chains started to speak, praising Tup. 

Tup's mouth fell open in a silent scream as he stared down at the floor. Chains' fingers dug into his hips until the color in his skin whited out. The disgusting, nasty grunts and groans coming from the older man would’ve practically made Tup go deaf. He hated every second of this. 

It went on for a while. Chains was ruthless and never stopped to take a break or ask if Tup was okay. He only cared about getting off and using Tup's body for his own pleasure. 

Tup whimpered and sobbed every so often. How could he not? This hurt like hell. Chains forced himself inside of him and Tup was not sure if he hurt him down there or not. Tup groaned when Chains' right hand came around to wrap itself around his dick, which was pressed up against his stomach. He wanted to slam his front against the shelf and crush Chains' hand in between them, but it would earn him a slap, and Chains might not be all too forgiving. 

All the color in Tup's eyes disappeared when Chains bucked up into him a bit too hard. The teenager shouted in pain and scrambled, hands flying out, trying to swat Chains hands away. 

"Shit!” Chains yelled, almost losing his balance. “Stop moving!" He grabbed Tup's hands to press them hard against his back. 

Tup whimpered and whined, fidgeting. "S-Stop. S-Stop. I don't want this. Please! Please, s-Stop. I c-c-cant. I can't."

Chains rolled his eyes and rammed forward, hitting something hard. 

Tup choked on a gasp and whined louder. He kicked his feet, resulting in pain to spark up like white stars. Chains growled dangerously and placed his hand over Tup's mouth to stifle the sounds he was making. The older man wanted to avoid getting found out because the kid couldn't keep his sounds down to a minimum. 

Tup felt Chains' hand shift over his mouth and he didn't hesitate on chomping down on it. 

Chains yelled in pain and jerked back, checking on his hand. His eyes spotted blood and teeth marks that decorated his skin. Chains saw red. 

Tup didn't have time to react before a hand came flying down and made contact with his ass cheek. He cried out, earning him another slap. He tried to move his hands to stop Chains, but Chains pinned his hands on his back and continued to slap him while he thrust up hard into him. 

Tup lost all ability to breathe. Every time he was thrust into, more of his sanity and self-control left him like his spirit. Hands came to his hips again and Tup could only cry as he was maneuvered over to the table next to the shelf and slammed down onto it. Tup coughed loudly when his chest throbbed.

Chains ignored his coughing and glared at him. "You wanna know what happens to disobedient soldiers who don't follow orders?" Chains asked. "They get punished." Chains moved his hips in a snapping motion, plundering Tup, making him cry harder. 

It hurt so badly. He felt feverish, burning on the inside and out. He made Chains angry, and he wasn't coming back from that. 

On every thrust, Chains insulted him with nasty, offensive names. "Fucking slut. You don't control this. I do! You don’t get a say in this. I do! That's why you get in trouble so often. Always opening that mouth of yours. Always getting defensive. Always got something to say," Chains grunted, moaning when he felt pleasure. It was one-sided though. 

"I should put that mouth to some good use, but this is  _ way  _ better than you sucking me off," Chains groaned again and slammed into Tup really hard. “I rather you did not bite my dick off anyways.”

Tup groaned deliriously, feeling sick again. Something sticky was leaking out of him; from in between his cheeks. It was thick and smelled like iron. It didn't faze Chains though. No, no, not one bit. 

"I wonder why they let pretty, young clones like you out of Kamino when they can use you for other things, ya know.” Chains teased him inappropriately. _“Mmm~_ _Fuuuck~_ A clone like you with a sexy, curvy body, and beautiful hair like yours, walking around swaying them hips of yours. Fuck, you should be a hooker. Oh _fuccck,_ yes!” Chains dehumanized Tup easily, breaking his little heart.

“I mean, come on. You got a mouth on you, sassy, and probably good at giving head too, right? You’ve got the looks. The style. The attitude! And you flirt with everyone you see; anything that's got two legs—maybe even more, if you’re into that—a hole, and a dick, you’d just ask to get fucked, huh?" Chains' sentence was broken off bit by bit because of his constant grunting and thrusting. 

"You get all confident though and show off. And it's really fucking annoying," Chains growled, yanking down on Tup's hair. 

Tup whimpered quietly. 

"You think you're all that. But guess what, Tup?" Chains asked, ramming up into him again, moving one hand to squeeze his ass. "You ain't special. You're just a pretty little trooper that is getting fucked like a common whore because he's not good enough. Because his family abandoned him."

Tup wheezed, head turned to the side. His heart hurt.  _ It's true. My family did leave me.  _

"His parents deserted him because he had a smart mouth and liked to tell people off. His boyfriend left him because he probably realized he is a double-crossing, backstabbing  _ cheat. _ " Chains thrust up again.

"And  _ allllll  _ because you came to me for help. You wanted attention. You were alone. You wanted someone to see you, to help you, to show you something real, more real than the dark thoughts in your head, the pain you felt, and the emptiness that was cast over that heart of yours every day." 

Chains yanked against the root of Tup's hair and leaned forward to whisper, "And now look at you. Spreading your legs wide open for me because you weren't loved. Never were."

Tup whimpered in pain when more of whatever that sticky stuff leaked out of him. He didn't focus on that. The pain was too great for him to focus on anything else. The words that Chains spewed at him like hot lava were nothing more than far away sentences. 

Chains took it to a whole 'notha level as he got closer to the edge. He slapped Tup's thighs, his hips, and his ass every other thrust inside of him. Tup felt something tear inside like tissue paper when Chains viciously slammed into him a certain way. The head of Chains’ thick cock brushed against Tup's prostate and then Chains went past it. 

Tup's body jerked. He sagged against the table. Not fighting this anymore. He was done. Done with everything. He felt too tired to fight. 

"Yeah, yeah, there we go. Going on lax on me. So  _ obedient~" _ Chains purred lewdly, moaning and groaning louder now. He was chasing his climax. 

Tup closed his eyes and trembled. He removed himself from this entirely. He felt like he was floating above, watching himself get raped. 

Chains' slid right back down past Tup's prostate and slammed directly into its cushions twice, causing the teenager to groan softly. It would've felt good had it been different circumstances. He felt empty though. Used. Disgusting. Violated. A common whore, Chains said. That was exactly how Tup felt at this very moment. Tup may not have wanted this, but his body reacted a different way, it betrayed him; his cock twitched and he came against the table side, squeezing around Chains' cock. 

_ "Mmmmm~ _ fuck, yes!" Chains bemoaned, thrusting uncontrollably, running it through him. "Fuck. I'mma cum. _ Mmm~ yeah~"  _

Chains shuddered hard and came deep inside of Tup, deep, painting his inner walls white. Tup felt the warmth seep inside of him but he did nothing but twitch. His empty eyes didn't move from the spot on the wall as Chains leaned against him, riding out his climax, thrusting still as he moaned. Tup panted hard and sat there, waiting for it to be over. 

A couple of minutes later, Chains slipped out of Tup and smiled at the work he did. Tup was a mess. 

"That was amazing. Thanks for that, Tup. Really," Chains thanked him. 

Tup didn't respond. He kept staring forward. 

Chains checked to make sure he wasn't dead before he put back on his armor and smirked at the teenager. Chains placed a hand on the table in front of Tup's face and said, "And don't tell anyone about this, or you'll regret it."

Tup didn't say anything. 

Chains smirked and waved goodbye before leaving the room.

Once he was gone, Tup lost his grip on the table, not being supported anymore, and he slipped off, falling onto the unforgiving cold floor. He stared at the yellow line just under the door from the hallway lights and shuddered.  _ I need to get out of here _ , he thought, whimpering when he shifted his legs. 

Unimaginable pain flared up like a bonfire. Tup let out a raspy cry and gave up on trying to move for a good while. Instead, he curled up on the floor and hid his face, believing that Chains would seek him out and come back to continue his monstrous deed. 

…

Tup managed to practically crawl his way back to the barracks. Well,  _ crawl _ is an exaggeration, but it matched the way Tup felt. His body lit aflame every time he moved an inch but his survival instincts were on high alert. He knew he needed to move to the somewhat safe barracks where if Chains came back he could scream for Kix, Jesse, or  _ someone _ who still cared to a sliver of the amount.

Tup stumbled through the doors, deciding to check out his wounds to see if he needed to patch anything up so Kix wouldn’t be suspicious. The lights in the ‘fresher were blinding compared to the darkish room he just came from but he blinked a few times and it seemed better. The teenager quickly removed his top armor and blacks once again, shaking in anticipation of the abuse he just went through. 

Tup hesitated after his top blacks were gone. Only superficial wounds; nail marks, redness on his hips from where Chains had gripped him, among other things. But did the young teen really want to see the horror he just went through?  _ Better to get it over with, Tup thought. _

Tup closed his eyes as he peeled his blacks off, gasping for breath for a couple of moments. Tup’s lower lip trembled at the sight of his lower body and he quickly shut his eyes, looking at the ceiling to get his composure. The kid felt the ghostly feeling of Chains gripping him,  _ using _ him. 

Tup mindlessly stepped into a shower stall, and with shaky hands, he turned the water on. He jumped at the sting of warm water hitting some of his injuries but the feeling faded away with time and how numb Tup felt.

His chin dropped to his chest and he let out silent tears, reaching up to completely soak his locks. At this moment in time, he hated his hair; he hated how long it was and how it could be easily yanked or pulled to make him obey.

Tup couldn’t bring himself to look down as he washed the rest of his body. He just needed to get the feeling of Chains’ hands and his seed off him. Off, now.

But even as Tup violently scrubbed he couldn’t get the feeling off of him. A pitiful sob left his lips as he shut the water off. Tup sniffled as he stepped out and fumbled to quickly dry himself off somewhat with a large towel compared to his now-smaller body. At least the towel was a bit soft.

Tup stared at the floor as he pulled his boxers back on along with his lower blacks, then he realized that he would need to grab a new shirt unless he wanted his brothers to notice. Even though they might not care, it was better to be safe from questions and getting caught up in a lie. 

As the traumatized boy reached into one of the compartments that held extra blacks for whatever the purpose was, Tup felt this pressure build-up in his chest as he pulled on a new shirt. He knew it was from him trying not to cry. But it failed as he slowly sat on the floor and tipped his head back. He could feel his heart starting to pound inside of his rib cage, the uncomfortable thumps making him squirm. 

The dam broke as Tup gasped for breath, not wanting to cry on the floor of the ‘fresher, it would just make him feel worse knowing that none of his brothers would come to try and help him. Sadly his wish of not losing it did not come true as he struggled for air, sobs ripping out of his throat. His world darkened as his mind went back to the dark storage unit, Chains’ body pressing against his, and-

“S-stop please,” Tup whimpered, curling into a ball tighter. The hyperventilation started to kick in and Tup hated it. While he had anxiety attacks caused by an anxiety disorder, they were never this bad unless he had a nightmare or something triggered him hard. He also hated panic attacks because his chest would always feel too tight for his body and he felt like he was dying. Not a good mix after he was just raped. The fire was back inside of his body, making him cry in pain as well as fear. 

Chains was still in the facility. He was somewhere near the barracks. Chains was in the 501st; he had access to the barracks no matter what. He could come to find him again. Chains could take him away. He had already taken so much from him, he didn’t know what else to do. It was all just...noise at this point. Just mindless noise in the back of his head. He hated it. He hated Chains. He has never hated someone; he was a compassionate teenager that wanted to give people the benefit of the doubt. But as the teenager looked back, it was him just being naive. He was done caring. All caring does is just get him hurt. He was too naive at the bar to know that Chains was a predator, looking for a young, good-looking clone to take advantage of. It could’ve been anyone; Zeke, Wooley, another clone on the younger-side, but no. Chains went for the youngest of them all. Someone he shared a barracks with. Someone he was supposed to protect as his older brother. 

_ Why, why, why, god why?!  _ Tup screamed in his head, but it was cut short by his sobbing, making his stomach jerk.

His crying wasn’t pretty; tears streamed down his face, his face was flushed pink from the lack of air he was getting because of his hyperventilating. He felt so sick to his stomach from the memory and feeling of what Chains did to him that he was sure he was going to throw up. His stomach lurched again so he shuffled to stand up and hurry over to the nearest stall before he knelt in front of a toilet, still sobbing. He wanted someone; Jesse, Kix, Fives, Rex, just  _ someone _ . He couldn’t do it anymore by himself. 

Jesse was pulled from his peaceful sleep to a faint sound of  _ something _ that Jesse was too tired to figure out at that exact moment. The lieutenant groggily opened his eyes as if that would help his hearing.

Once Jesse was more awake, he focused his ears on the sound that pulled him from sleep in the first place. He felt Kix shift slightly in his arms like he knew his husband was awake. Jesse finally connected the dots when the sound was suspiciously like sobbing and the missing teenager. 

Jesse sank back down into the bed, pulling Kix’s back an inch closer to his chest to wake him up more. The medic soundlessly pressed gently against Jesse, letting him know he was awake. It was a habit they developed when they were kids on Kamino. 

“The  _ ad’ika _ is crying,” Jesse whispered.

Kix turned around to stare blankly at his husband. “He’s your little brother too. You can get your ass up and go comfort him.”

Jesse shook his head and nuzzled Kix’s neck. “But you’re so much better at it,  _ cyar’ika _ . I love Tup, of course, but you have more paternal instincts than me.”

Kix scoffed and rolled his eyes before getting out of the bed, but not before saying, “If we ever have kids, you’re going to be the one getting up when they cry.”

Jesse smiled and muttered as Kix left the room, “Love you too.”

Kix wandered into the rec room, frowning when Tup wasn’t in sight but could still hear his crying. He followed his little brother's cries and eventually they led him to the ‘fresher.

The door opened, allowing Kix to walk inside and follow the horrid sounds of distress deeper into the bathroom until he came up to the second to last stall. The very last one was out of working order because Hardcase decided to be funny. 

Kix slowly pushed the stall door open and peeked inside. Down on the floor was Tup, head leaning against the toilet seat, skin pale, body trembling, harsh breaths coming out like a tidal wave. Kix knelt down just behind him and bit his lower lip. His observant eyes flick from left to right as he took mental notes of all the visible symptoms.  _ Definitely a panic attack, from the looks of it. Dilated pupils. Clammy skin. Fast breathing; hyperventilating.  _ Kix sniffed at the air and refrained from plugging his nose.  _ And vomiting too. This must be a bad one.  _

With his diagnosis out of the way, Kix placed his hands on his knees, not wanting to attempt to touch Tup just yet. 

"Tup'ika? Kid, it's alright. You are having an attack," Kix spoke, eyeing Tup. The medic has dealt with both panic attacks and anxiety attacks from the teenager.

Tup stared at the stall wall to his left thigh. He didn't take his eyes off of it. He wasn't responding. His breaths rasped in and out of him, lifting and lowering his thin chest. 

Kix tried again. "Tup, hey. It's me, Kix. Can you look at me, please?" Kix slowly reached out for the kid's left shoulder, but when his fingers came into contact, the kid gasped sharply and whined. 

Kix yanked his hand away as if he had been burnt when Tup practically threw himself against the toilet. The tremors in his limbs were mostly gathered in his lower half, Kix realized. His legs were shaking like crazy. Kix bit his lower lip and kept that in mind. 

"Stop. Stop. Stop. No. No." Tup said, grabbing a fistful of hair and tugging as hard as he could. 

"Hey, no, no. Don't do that." Kix cooed, reaching up to remove Tup's hands from his hair. 

Tup jerked back and screamed, "Don't touch me!!" His dilated eyes flicked over to meet Kix's concerned gaze. 

Kix faltered. Tup's gaze was…haunting…lacking in personality completely. He was just so petrified. But of what? 

"Tup, do you recognize me?" Kix asked, easing him into the first important question. 

Tup eyed him and gulped. 

Kix spotted a bit of puke in the corner of Tup's mouth. He reminded himself to get Tup some toilet paper later. 

When no answer came, Kix tried again. "Tup, just a nod or a shake of your head. Do you recognize me?"

Tup stared hard. He looked behind Kix and shuttered. His breathing picked up again as the darkness withdrew for one second, allowing those rampant, panicked thoughts to make a comeback. He realized something that shattered the little bit of reality he had left.  _ Oh. My. God. Oh my god. Oh no. Fuck. Oh no.  _ Tup shifted his legs and pain flared up his spine. He whimpered in agony and cried harder, choking on his gasps. 

He just realized something.  _ I...oh fucking hells. Oh god, please no.  _ He looked down at his legs and wheezed.  _ I lost my virginity to that…that monster! Oh no. Nonononononononono. No no no nonononono. Fucking no! Please! This can't be happening to me.  _ Tup wanted it to be Comet, not Chains. It broke his heart. 

This itchy feeling crawled up his legs and arms and Tup jerked forward to grab into the toilet as his stomach squeezed hardly. Puke sprayed out of his mouth into the toilet. Tup gagged hard, so hard that he felt like he was bringing up a liver. 

Kix shook his head and got closer. He didn't care if Tup was unresponsive. He was suffering. And if he didn't get him to calm his breathing down, mixed with the excessive, fear-induced vomiting, he'll likely asphyxiate. 

"Alright, it's okay. Get it all out. Just slow down your breathing, kiddo." Kix cooed, reaching out to rub Tup's back. 

Tup flinched and moaned into the toilet bowl. His voice echoed and bounced against the porcelain before another horrid stream ripped out of him. Kix kept rubbing his back and encouraging him to keep breathing slowly. Tup sobbed hardly and whined, feeling like his whole world was falling apart, and Kix had no idea what had caused it in the first place. 

After Tup finished, he rested his forehead against the toilet seat again and coughed loudly, still breathing hard. Kix stood up and hurried out of the stall. He grabbed a roll of paper towels off the counter and brought it back over. He returned to Tup's side and raised his chin so he could wipe the puke off his cheeks, chin, and mouth. 

Tup's glazed-over eyes stared straight through him. He was gone, not exactly here. And he still wasn't breathing slowly. Kix placed the balled-up paper towels on the floor near the stall door and maneuvered the kid so he could lay against his chest. 

A small squeak exited out of Tup's mouth, yanking at Kix's heart. 

"Shhhh. I know, kid. I know. Just breathe for me. Breathe with me," Kix directed him, taking a deep exaggerated breath for him. "You feel that? That's me. Breathing. Now it's your turn. Follow me, okay?" Kix took another deep breath in, held it for five, and let it back out. 

Tup kept hyperventilating though. Head tucked under Kix's chin. Kix rubbed the kid's back as he continued to whisper calming words out into the open air. Tup practically vibrated against the medic, worrying his older brother more as time went on, but eventually, Tup's tremors dissipated, and his fast breathing evened out.

Kix smiled sympathetically when Tup continued to sniffle and cry softly. He was happy that he wasn't hyperventilating anymore, but Tup started to shift out of his arms, not wanting to be held now.

Kix sighed. In all honesty, he was getting frustrated with the teenager. Tup obviously made a mistake, but to Kix, he was suffering in self-pity when he shouldn’t be. And it was starting to irritate the medic. But Tup was his little brother and he will always love him.

“Come on,” Kix gestured for Tup to stand up. Tup hesitated to follow but eventually did because he could see the slight anger rolling off of the medic. 

Kix led him to the doors but Tup suddenly stopped following. Kix could tell Tup stopped by the lack of his footsteps. The older clone sighed and twisted around.

“Are you going to come and sleep or act like a stubborn little kid?” In hindsight, Kix shouldn’t have said that. The medic had been on edge the last couple of days, being busy as the CMO of the 501st wasn’t an easy job. Coric did his best to help but he could only do so much and Kix had been keeping an eye on Tup, but he was done. 

Tup visibly flinched, Chains words flashing in his head, his brain saying “danger, danger”.

Tup stepped away from Kix, making his answer obvious. Kix tossed his hands up, too tired and frustrated with the teenager. “Alright, you know what? Fine. Don’t sleep. Fine by me.”

The rejection slammed Tup hard in the chest. Now even Kix was turning on him. Tup didn’t register the door closing, he could only focus on his heartbreaking and cracking even more.

Kix sighed, dragging a hand down his face as he laid back in bed. Jesse cracked his eyes open and frowned when he looked at Tup’s bunk and didn’t see the teenager. “Where's the kid?”

Kix leaned his head on Jesse’s shoulder, already regretting what he said. “I snapped at him. I don’t think he will be sleeping tonight.”

Jesse pulled Kix back, shooting him a disapproving glance. “Kix….why did you snap at him?”

Kix waved his hands. "I know, I know. I shouldn't have done it but he’s being stubborn and I just can’t help him anymore. He doesn’t want help and that scares me.”

Jesse leveled him one more glare before pulling him to lay back down. Kix went easily, dozing slightly as Jesse stroked the back of his head. Kix’s golden eyes, however, flew open when the barrack doors opened. A set of feet padded closer to the couple and they immediately knew it was their  _ vod’ika _ .

Tup’s chin was tucked to his chest, unable to meet their eyes. Kix and Jesse shared a look, quickly communicating through looks before Kix gently laced his fingers with one of Tup’s hands. The kid’s hand jerked but relaxed once he recognized it was Kix. He was gently pulled in between the two of them, feeling their warmth surround him and set deep in his bones. It was nice for a change.

“I’m sorry,” Tup whispered in the dead of night. They knew what he was talking about. Comet and the whole situation.

Kix pressed a kiss to the top of his head before wrapping his arms loosely around Tup so he didn’t feel trapped. “I forgive you. You made a mistake. It happens. You and Comet will both heal with time, and if that means you stay apart; then you stay apart.”

Jesse pressed his lips to Tup’s hair also. “I forgive you as well. You’re still my baby brother.”

Tup shuffled closer to the both of them, feeling them move closer as well, making him almost completely covered by their body mass. Tup seemed to relax but it didn’t go unnoticed by the two adults that Tup cried himself to sleep that night.

* * *

  
  


Tup had no time to let his body heal from his rape. The distraught teenager was too scared to tell Kix or anyone else in fear of being told that it was his fault. And just the embarrassment was enough to keep him quiet. 

Now, Tup was in the middle of a firefight along with the 212th, not up to par with the rest of his brothers. His body ached in places they have never hurt before. If his armor brushed up against his wounds a certain way he would squirm in discomfort. A few of his brothers noticed his pain but never verbally offered help. However, they did cover him if he started to drop behind and give him time to recover before he popped back up and started shooting again.

He was mostly with the 501st, trying to escape the 212th’s dirty glances his way; he’d rather be with the people that hated him the least. At least it was the 212th and not the 104th. No one in Torrent was near him, they had gotten separated during the beginning of the battle and just never met up again.

Tup's head pounded inside his skull. Heat spread across his lower half and his legs shook slightly under his weight. One tiny kick to the back of his knees and he would be down and out. 

“Tup, you gotta stay alert.” One of his brothers tried to get his attention but Tup was too far gone in pain, sorrow, and his own mind.

He collapsed on his hands and knees, gasping and panting. He barely felt one of his brothers drop-down next to him. He distantly heard his voice being called but he couldn't get his vocal cords to respond. The fire was now in his lungs, black spots danced in front of his eyes.

“Get a medic for the kid!” A different brother shouted, slipping an arm under Tup to keep him from collapsing onto the ground. 

“Come on, kid. Stay awake until Kix comes.” If Tup was coherent enough, he would’ve been happy his brothers didn't hate him enough to leave him to fend for himself.

A few minutes later, Kix arrived with the rest of Torrent, catching up with Tup and the 212th squad he was left with. The lieutenant of that squad approached Kix and told him everything that happened regarding the teenager. Kix looked over at Tup and sighed heavily. He thanked the lieutenant before heading on over to crouch down in front of the teen leaning his back against a tree.

"Tup, kiddo. What's wrong?" Kix asked straightforwardly. 

Tup stared at the dirt.  _ Go away. Why are you here?  _ He wondered.  _ I'm just wasting your time. Just…just leave me alone in peace. Let me suffer without you making it worse for me.  _ Tup glanced over at the rest of Torrent and noticed that Hardcase was watching the medic check on him. Tup knew that he was judging the medic for still worrying over a kid who got caught cheating on his boyfriend with another man. 

"Tup?" Kix called his name, noticing his lack of response. "Do you hear me?"

Tup slowly blinked and avoided making eye contact with Kix. He turned his head and looked at the ground again. 

Kix placed a hand on Tup's shoulder and patted it. "The guys said that you were behaving strangely the whole time you were with them. Stumbling. Slowing down. Flinching or grimacing. Signs of pain. Can you explain why to me?" Kix asked gently, trying to remain calm with Tup.

Tup still didn't respond. He closed his eyes and let himself sink into his dark depression. 

Kix held in a sigh and looked away, clenching his jaw. "Tup, I'm serious. This isn't a joke. Are you just...are you actually in pain or are you just pretending to get attention? Please, please don't lie to me."

Kix had to ask. He was a medic, whose time and evaluation could be used on someone else, someone who was actually injured or in pain. Dying, even. If Tup was pretending to get attention from him, Kix won't have it. One of his many pet peeves was attention-seekers. Jesse was the exception because he was adorable and he knew when to stop. Tup obviously didn't. 

Tup didn't open his eyes.  _ If I tell him, he won't believe me anyway. He'll probably think I'm lying just like how he thinks I'm lying about me stumbling and behaving in a way like I am in pain. I can't waste his time anymore. He's better off without giving me attention.  _

"I'm fine." Tup finally answered with an emotionless tone, eyes downcast. 

Kix huffed and frowned deeply. He raised an eyebrow in annoyance and stood up, brushing the dirt off his knee pads. 

"Uh-huh. Just wasting my time. Again," Kix mumbled scornfully, face twitching as his headache worsened. 

Tup hardly hid his flinch. 

The angry medic stomped off, returning to his squad grouped up against the cliffside. Tup watched silently as Kix said a couple of words to them and massaged his eyebrows, eyes squeezed shut. Jesse's eyebrows lowered into a quizzical frown. Hardcase's chin snapped to the right, looking at Tup with fury in his eyes. 

Tup looked at the ground again and tucked his legs close to his chest. He rested his chin on his knee pads and whispered quietly, too quiet for anyone to hear. 

The 212th troopers near him subtly scooted away and went elsewhere to talk to other clones or just to stay away from Tup like he was the plague. 

Tup closed his eyes and ignored the warm pressure behind his eyes. He shivered in his loneliness. Containing warmth was hard when depression was your only friend in times like these. He wished that it could all just go away. That everything could return to the way things were. But he knew it never would. He destroyed every established pillar that supported his family or friend pyramid. 

He was truly alone.

Fifteen minutes later, Fives and the 212th lieutenant ordered for everyone to get moving to their destination point. Tup stood on shaky legs and still avoided eye contact with anyone that passed by like it was a fun arcade game even though it was nowhere near fun. 

Tup walked away from the tree and headed straight, following the crowd. He came up beside his squad and remained silent, now with them, he had to stay with them. Someone with a familiar armor painting came up on Tup's right side and he looked to see who it was. 

It was Wooley. 

Tup's heart rate sped up. He didn't want to be near the young medic who was also his previous best friend. Tup knew that he hated him. He knew just by looking at his body language or the helmet tilt. Tup looked away and straight ahead again. 

Wooley stomped past him and kept going, not wanting to be close to Tup either. 

Tup realized and seemed to shrink into himself.  _ I wish I was invisible,  _ he wished. In front of him was Jesse. To Jesse's left was Kix, who was shaking slightly. Tup bit his bottom lip behind his helmet and held back his emotions. Suddenly, someone slammed into his left shoulder pad, knocking him forward, jolting his internal wounds. 

Tup inhaled sharply and bit down his cry of pain that surely everyone would hear. He looked to his left and saw that it was the brute, Hardcase who knocked into him. It must've been on purpose no doubt. 

The heavy gunner glanced over his shoulder, leaned over so no one would hear what he said next. He growled, "Don't waste Kix's time like that again. Got it?"

Tup slowly nodded, not saying a word. Hardcase huffed and stalked off ahead of the group. Tup sniffled and clenched his hands by his side. His wounds began to burn again. It sizzled and throbbed. He was pretty sure that he had to have ripped a terribly healed up wound. He feels something wet and sticky on the inside of his thighs. Tup kept all sounds at bay and forced himself to walk on. 

Just to walk on. 

* * *

Tup was sitting on the end of his bunk, staring down at a blaster that was in his shaking hands. The bunk room was quiet, lifeless, the perfect setting for him to let his thoughts go so he could think freely. 

His thoughts were nothing but dark clouds. Thunder and lightning. But it was also quiet and peaceful. Too peaceful. 

Lines of blood trailed down the insides of his wrists, dripping onto the metal floor. Tup hardly registered the subtle, stinging pain coming from them. The wounds weren’t accidental. They were self-inflicted. They had been for a few weeks, now.

The pain felt good. It was the best kind of feeling that Tup's felt in a very long time. A month, perhaps, maybe more. Tup peeked over at the vibroblade abandoned on the floor next to his feet and he would wonder if he should cut deeper. It decided not to. He just wanted to watch his blood fall. At some point, the waterworks started, and Tup silently cried, wide-eyed at the gun. 

_ Should I do this? Should I shoot myself? It'll be less messy if I do. I rather they do not have to clean up a lot of blood if I cut myself.  _ Tup hiccuped, vision blurring at the edges. 

_ Would anyone...would they miss me at all? I don't think so. I don't think they'd even care if I ended my pitiful life. I am a waste of space anyway, so why would they give two fucks about what I did with my life.  _ Tup trembled more, breaths heaving out of his nose.  _ It'll be so easy to just put the gun up to my head and shoot myself. I can do it right now! I c-can. _

The door opened, startling Tup. He looked up and over at the door. Hardcase and Echo walked in and spotted Tup with a gun in his hands and crying. Annoyance rolled through the heavy gunner and ARC trooper. Their annoyance clouded their judgment for a quick minute, not allowing them to notice the scarlet red all over Tup's wrists. 

Echo scoffed tiredly and kept on going, ignoring Tup completely, while Hardcase stopped and turned to face the teenager, glaring at him. 

"Tup, stop acting like a damn child and own up to what you did. You trying to get attention by holding a blaster up to yourself will only make you look even worse." Hardcase growled at him, sitting on his own bed. Echo closed his eyes and laid on his. 

Tup wasn't surprised that his older brother said that venomously, but it didn't hurt any less. The teenager curled into him and clenched his jaw. His sobs stretched out and became more guttural, full of pain and hopelessness. Hardcase, Echo, and everyone else constantly showed him that he was a screw-up and he was no longer loved. He accepted it all. He understood that he was wrong for what he did or believed he was wrong. 

Everyone sure did make him feel like it was. 

Tup couldn't stop shaking. His anxiety was through the roof, yet, he didn't have a panic attack or an anxiety attack. Instead, he curled up tighter and tighter until he felt like he was disappearing from view forever, then he smacked the blaster against his chest multiple times, mumbling under his breath. 

The door opened again and this time Jesse came in. He immediately noticed the knife on the floor that the other two clearly didn't notice. Jesse slowly stepped forward and saw the blood dripping down Tup's wrist.  _ Oh, Tup…  _ he thought, looking to glare at the other two because now this was serious. 

"Are you two that blind to not see _ karking  _ blood?" Jesse asked Hardcase and Echo. 

Echo blinked at him and sat up. "Blood?"

"There is blood all over his wrists! What the hell is wrong with you?" Jesse asked angrily. 

Hardcase bit his lower lip and looked off to the side. Jesse slowly walked closer to Tup and stood next to the bed across from him. 

"Tup'ika-" Jesse tried, but Tup flinched when he said that nickname. Jesse cut himself off and stopped talking for a second.

Tup stared at the floor, never looking at Jesse. Echo walked over and stood on the other side of the bed, looking between Jesse and the kid nervously. He didn't actually want Tup to do whatever he was thinking of doing, so he came over to try and persuade him not to. Hardcase stood up from his bed eventually and walked over to stand beside Echo, not wanting to get any closer and trigger Tup. 

"Tup, we need you to put the blaster down. I need you to put the gun down, now," Jesse tried again. 

Tup closed his eyes and ignored him. The more Jesse spoke, the more empty Tup became. 

"Tup, please, listen to Jesse. Just put the gun down and we can talk." Echo tried to talk to Tup, hoping that the teenager would listen for another reason. But he didn't know how far gone Tup was. 

He simply ignored them and sniffled, crying softly. His brothers didn't want to get any closer to him. They were afraid that he’d snap.

"Hardcase, go get Kix and the others," Jesse whispered to the heavy gunner. "And hurry."

Tup clapped his hands over his ears at the mention of Kix and slammed his eyes shut. Jesse continues to keep his distance. Kix would know what to do and they needed him, pronto. 

It didn't take long for Hardcase to retrieve the medic, Rex, and Fives. The three of them entered the room and hurried over. When they saw the state that Tup was in, they slowed down and looked to Jesse or Echo for an explanation, but there wasn't much to explain when the teenager was sitting there in front of all of them with a gun in his hands and a bloody vibroblade on the floor. 

Fives and Rex’s eyes widened in shock at the vibroblade. They both knew that Tup never really carried one on him and they hid the rest of them if they were just lying around in fear Tup would sneak one away. Fives’ heart lurched in his chest because he remembered that he hadn't used his knife in a while. He dropped a hand to his belt where he normally kept the blade just to check that it was still in its place. It wasn’t.

Rex’s eyes followed his and realized what had happened. The captain could read Fives at that moment and Fives was a goddamn open book of guilt and fear.

“ _ H-he took it. He must’ve done it a while ago. H-how did I not notice before?”  _ Fives brokenly explained to Rex in quiet Mando’a. Rex couldn’t answer; he couldn’t juggle two important things going on at the same time when his unstable-kid has a fucking blaster in his hand.

Kix ignored his brothers’ conversation about the blade, only checking a few things in Mando’a but he wasn’t too concerned about that. He put on a brave face, trying hard to look afraid, and he knelt down on the floor in front of Tup. 

"Tup, why do you have a gun in your hand?" Kix asked, wanting to know even though it was kind of obvious, but he really just wanted Tup to talk to him. 

Tup slowly opened his eyes and stared at the floor. He didn't respond. 

"Tup…I need you to put the blaster down. Please. It's dangerous. You shouldn't do whatever you are thinking of doing," Kix said. 

Tup's chin snapped up and he hissed, "Why would you care what I choose to do? Huh?"

Kix blinked. "What-?"

"I don't need any help! I don't need your concern or your pity! You made it very clear to me that you don't care anymore. You don't want to have anything to do with me!"

Kix opened his mouth to object to that, but Tup growled, "You don't! Don't lie to me, Kix!"

Kix closed his mouth. He wanted so badly to prove Tup wrong. He wanted to tell him that he does care but Tup would only keep telling him the opposite. Besides, has Kix really tried to show that he still loves Tup? Truly? Has Kix stayed by Tup’s side through everything that had happened to him from beginning to  _ end?  _ Not exactly, but it was because Tup kept pushing him away and he stressed Kix out to the point he needed a break.  _ Even so, that’s no excuse for me to have abandoned him like that when everyone else seemed to have removed themselves from his space...from his life,  _ Kix thought in shame and guilt.

"None of you care!!" Tup hardly screamed, voice cracking, glaring at each and every one of them now.

It was true. Kix and everyone else’s shoulders sagged in defeat. Tup was absolutely right. 

“You stopped caring after what happened with Comet and me. Some of you even stopped caring  _ before _ that.” 

Fives and Rex winced. 

“You made it clear that you  _ hate  _ me!" Tup sobbed harder, bottom lip trembling. 

Kix's heart clenched in his chest.  _ How did I let this get so bad?  _ He wondered.  _ I should've seen the signs.  _

"That's not true, Tup,” Kix tried to object. He won’t give up, not now, not when he could lose his little brother forever to the merciless bullet of the weapon in his hand.

Tup shook his head and stood up. He slowly walked towards the center of the room and glared at everyone with tear-filled eyes. "It is. Rex, Fives, Hardcase, and Echo have stopped talking to me. Hardcase told me to screw off and that I shouldn't waste your time, Kix, or anyone else's!"  _ But Kix...you and Jesse were the only ones that showed me kindness,  _ Tup added in his mind.

Everyone gasped quietly and looked at Hardcase as if scrutinizing him.

"Don't look at him like that!" Tup yelled, getting everyone to look at him. "He was right. You are all right, as always. I waste your time. I am just a waste of space."

Tup started to mumble, shaking his head, tears streaming down his face and snot leaking out of his nose. 

"Tup, p-please, that's not true at all," Echo said with a small whimper, feeling as though he was going to cry. He hated watching Tup cry.

Tup reached up and pulled at his hair, shaking his head again. "No, no. You are right! I keep getting in the way of things. I hurt people. I upset others. I am weak and stupid! I keep thinking that I am loved when the people who claim to  _ love  _ me, ha, ha, they actually  _ HATE  _ me. And I..I've been blinded this whole time."

Rex stepped forward now. "We do love you, Tup! I love you!"

Tup twisted to face him. "No, you don't! You don't! Stop lying to me! You only loved me when you had just met me! Don’t lie to me again!"

Fives trembled. "We aren't. Tup, we care about you. We don't hate you."

"You don't. You don't," Tup mumbled, backing away from them, raising the gun slightly. He cried a bit quieter, curling into himself, wanting the world to just disappear. "I…I-I-I want to d-disappear. I’ve always wanted to. I never had the courage. I was just a weak bitch that let people use me. I don’t want that anymore. I want to be strong and brave again, unafraid...of death," He cried, putting all his brothers on edge. 

Rex and Fives were terrified because this, this right here, was their greatest fear. Fives was crying softly, wanting to grab Tup and yank him into the safest hug there could be. 

"Tup, please think about this for a minute, please," Kix said firmly. "Think about it. You don't want to do this. You have your whole life in front of you."

Tup's eyes downcasted.  _ Yeah, I did have my whole life in front of me. Not anymore _ . He tuned them out. He didn't want to listen to them anymore. He made his decision an hour ago. He didn't hear his brothers yelling or trying to attempt to get him to stop. Everything was white noise. The world was quiet for once. Tup smiled and directed his attention to the cold metal of the gun digging into his clammy palms. The buzzing in his ears got louder and louder until he heard nothing but that. 

The pain he felt was gone. The old wounds he had were gone. All the cuts and bruises he had were gone. All the pain was gone, overridden by adrenaline. Tears painted his pale and slightly thin face. Tremors still rode through his hands and arms, causing his grip on the gun to become unsteady. 

He closed his eyes and slowly raised the gun up to his head, or tried to, but his hands shook terribly. 

"Tup! Put the gun down!" Kix yelled, standing up straight, no longer kneeling in front of him. 

Jesse raised two hands to his mouth and yelled, "Someone do something!"

"We can't scare him or he’ll end up shooting one of us or himself!" Hardcase yelled back.

Kix ignored their yelling and raised his hands in front of his body. "Tup'ika, please kiddo, don't. I'll help you. I'll do anything to help, just please don't do this. Please!"

Tup sniffled and cocked his head to the side; normally it would be a cute little movement but it was now sad. His heart throbbed.  _ I know you care about me, Kix. I know you and Jesse cared about me more than anyone else. I pushed you away and I am sorry for that,  _ Tup thought, it went unsaid to the couple.  _ But this is what I want. I deserve this. I deserve to end the pain. You don't deserve to constantly take care of a bothersome person like me. But don't mistake this to mean something else...I do love you. All of you.  _ Tup smiled and closed his eyes. For once in his life, he wasn't afraid. 

Kix jerked forward, screaming along with the others, "No!!" 

“Tup don’t it!”

“Kid, stop!”

Tup pulled the trigger. All went silent. 

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am sorry...it has been a pleasure writing these past few chapters. Angel and I have worked so hard on these chapters and we have had so much fun writing and creating a bomb-ass story for you guys. Sometimes stories don't have happy endings...  
> Beta-reader/Editor-AngelWars (Ao3). She's incredible 💙 She has all the credit for the rape scene as well.


	48. Author's Note

So, a lot of you were mad and/or disappointed with the last chapter just because you assumed it was the last chapter. I have said time and time again that I won’t be ending this sorry anytime soon. You have to put your trust in me that I will TELL you outright “I am ending the story”. I understand that some of you, based on the ending and the note, that I am done. I am not. But thank you to the people who called me out on the tags and warnings. Again, my apologies.

And please don’t ever assume that I will kill off a character _just_ to end a story. I always make decisions based on what you guys, the readers, will feel when reading. Don’t make me or my editor feel guilt for making a decision in OUR story. Even if this was the ending I had in mind, respect it. You of course can speak your opinion. I want this to be a safe place for people, but don't bash us for making a decision.

This note isn't for the purpose of attacking anyone or to be malicious; everyone is entitled to their own opinion. We just wanted to let you know how we felt about your guys' response to the last chapter.

Angel- "After having woken up at 11 am, I immediately raced over to grab my phone and read the latest comments of the new chapter. And let me tell y'all, I was a bit upset and discouraged. The author and I both understand that the appropriate tags weren't placed and we posted this at 11 pm! Sooooo, you'll have to forgive us for that. We were tired. And I immediately went to sleep after we finished editing the chapter, so I wasn't able to catch the warning errors until this morning. I would've told Nicole otherwise that it was not correct warnings.

But other reasons why I am upset is because A LOT of you kept saying you were _disappointed_ and didn't like the ending, or some assumed we were trying to end the story as _quickly as possible_ and just _killed_ the main character off. Do you really take us to be lousy people? Honestly?

This isn't meant to be a mean message to you, but to reflect my true feelings about this from the editor. You guys' messages came off as rude to me and it discouraged me for a bit. You didn't have to tell us that we majorly disappointed you or the ending of the _chapter_ was BAD. If you didn't mean to upset us, well, you did.

Don't do it again. That wasn't exactly what we wanted and just keep those kinds of opinions to yourselves because that's what drives authors away."

As I said in the last note not all stories have happy endings and lucky for your poor souls, this story isn't over yet. There will be another chapter by next week. Please stand by and have a good rest of your day. 💙


	49. Chapter 48- Fall Seven Times, Stand Up Eight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Not all stories have happy endings, but Tup's story isn't over yet.
> 
> Warnings: Mentioned suicide attempt. Past self-harm. Past rape mentioned in semi-graphic ways. Graphic head injury from the result of attempted suicide. Know your limits when reading. 💙

“Tup!” Kix shouted as he rushed forward to grab the falling teenager. The medic barely had time to catch him before he hit the ground. Blood was already starting to drip to the floor, seeping into Kix’s hands. 

The others rushed forward but then gave it a second thought and stayed back. Rex had to restrain Fives by wrapping his arms around his boyfriend's waist. Rex whispered in his ear as Fives struggled to break out of the lock, “Stop Fives. Stop. Let Kix handle this, baby.”

Fives sobbed and went limp in Rex’s hold, leaning back against his chest. Echo was pacing the floor, his brilliant mind going a hundred miles a minute. Hardcase was violently fidgeting as Jesse went to fetch the spare med-pack from under his and Kix’s bunk without the medic even telling him to. Jesse slid the pack to Kix’s awaiting hands and stepped back. He let Echo curl close to him so he would stop pacing.

The door to the barracks slid open revealing  _ multiple _ troopers from the 501st. 

“Hey, we heard a blaster go off and some shouting. Everything okay?” Talon, a sharpshooter with dark green hair asked.

Jesse, Fives, Rex, Echo, and Hardcase were mute as they stepped to the side slightly, revealing the teenager in a bloody heap. All of the troopers gasped, some cursed, and Torrent was pretty sure two of them screamed for a split second.

Without looking up, Kix addressed Talon, “Tell the General to pick up the pace on getting back to Coruscant.” Talon quickly fled the room after giving a firm nod.

Kix had to push back his tears so his vision could be clear. His fingers shook as he ran his fingers through Tup’s hair that he pulled out of its messy bun. He desperately searched for an exit wound of the shot and found it toward the top middle section of his skull. 

_ He must’ve aimed it so it would angle up instead of straight through. I don’t know if that was purposeful or not,  _ Kix thought. His hands were now soaked in blood, worrying Kix. He examined both the entry and exit points. He noticed that the entry wound was just  _ slightly  _ to the left side of Tup’s head. The medic traced a line with his finger on his free hand from the entry wound to the exit. It was a pretty straight line. 

_ Shit. The shot could've hit his frontal lobe, motor cortex, and possibly his left parietal lobe. Not good,  _ Kix assessed the situation. From what he could gather, Tup could possibly live with his frontal lobe being damaged if that was a possibility; it would only affect their baby brother’s personality and behavior, or he would need help problem-solving in some situations. 

The left parietal lobe was in charge of helping Tup understand written and spoken languages which Tup could hypothetically live with if there was permanent damage as long as the others helped him, but it would be difficult. But if Tup’s motor cortex was screwed, he was fucked. The Kaminonans would decommission him without a second thought.

"Dammit. Let's hope it was just a graze wound and didn't damage anything permanently, Tup. Please," Kix mumbled to himself, keeping watch on Tup's breathing.

"Should we move him onto the bed?" Jesse asked, looking at Kix. 

"No no. It could cause more damage than necessary. We'll just have to wait until we get to Coruscant and hope that we make it in time," Kix told him, lips pulling into a straight line. 

The Resolute arrived on Coruscant on time after fifteen minutes. It was a good thing they were already on their way back. 

With Jesse's and Hardcase's help, Kix lifted Tup onto an awaiting stretcher and they quickly moved towards the nearest elevator. They took the elevator down to the hang at bay and left the ship, heading straight for the GAR barracks. There was a huge medbay inside that had the equipment they needed to help Tup. 

Kix, Jesse, Fives, and Hardcase raced across the shipyard, hurrying for the barracks. It seemed that the 91st, 327th, the 104th, and the 212th were there too. Kix smiled at the sight.  _ Good, more help.  _

Kix raced inside and led his brothers down to the medbay. When they reached the doors, Kix waved them inside and ordered, "Hurry hurry! Get him inside!"

The medics already inside froze at the sight of Kix and the blood. 

"Helix! Arks! I need you to prep the station!" Kix yelled, looking at the two of them. 

Arks and Helix both looked at the injured teenager on the stretcher and gaped. They quickly got to work, Helix being quicker because he was the oldest medic and he was serious about his job. Arks hesitated slightly, then he got to work too. 

Kix moved Tup's stretcher over to one of the empty beds and looked to Choss and Concept for assistance. They quickly ran over and helped him lift Tup into the medical bed. 

"Get them out of here. They don't need to see this," Kix told Choss, briefly looking over at the others near the door. They looked worried and they probably wanted to stay, but if Kix ordered them to leave and stay outside the medbay, they will, just reluctantly. 

"Prep for assessment and surgery!" Kix said firmly, looking up as Helix approached. "Helix, are the wounds he inflicted fixable? Will there be permanent damage?" He asked, not exactly sure himself. Arks took Helix's place on the other side of the bed while Helix came around to stand next to Kix. 

Helix looked at the wound and then at Kix. "It will be very likely there will be no chance of permanent damage if we work fast enough. But there could be complications for Tup if something goes wrong."

Kix let out a long exhale and grabbed some plastic gloves from a box beside him. What Helix said reminded Kix that anything could happen here _. So, pretty much, quick and careful.  _ Kix told himself. Arks handed over some equipment and stayed out of Kix's way, knowing that he'll be able to do it. Kix looked down at Tup with a tool in his hand and focused.  _ You're going to be alright, kiddo. Not if I can’t help it.  _

… 

Kix exited the medbay after six hours. He rubbed his eyes and sighed, tilting his head back. He looked to his left and realized that Fives, Rex, Hardcase, Echo, and Jesse never left. They had been sitting outside the room the whole time. It was sweet to see that. 

A forced smile broke out onto his face as he approached. 

"Hey," Kix greeted them. 

Fives and Rex shot up to stand and quickly walked up to the tired medic. 

"Is he okay?"

"What happened?!"

Kix raised his hands in front of his chest and waved them back and forth. "Hold on, hold on. One question at a time so I can answer."

Fives and Rex chilled out, standing silently. Jesse and Hardcase eventually came over and stood behind the ARC and captain. 

"Yes, Tup is fine. The surgery was a success. We managed to fix the wound and hopefully not leave any permanent damage behind. We won't know if we did or not though until later when he wakes up,” Kix explained, answering the first question. 

"How…how did you manage to do that?" Fives asked, eyes wet with tears. 

Kix looked at him. "A new medical method that the Coruscanti doctors figured out a couple of years ago. That and the technology we have, it was nowhere impossible to do." 

Fives let out a shaky sigh of relief and nodded. "Oh good. I'm glad."

"So it's just a matter of waiting?" Rex asked. 

Kix nodded. "Pretty much." 

Hardcase looked down at his feet and clenched his fists. Jesse looked at him and raised an eyebrow. 

"What's wrong?" Jesse asked him. 

Everyone turned to look at the heavy gunner, wondering the same thing. 

Hardcase looked up with tears in his eyes. "This wouldn't have happened. This…it's all my fault. I shouldn't have been an asshole to him!"

Jesse frowned. "Hardcase…"

Hardcase shook his head fervently. "No! I was mean to Tup, unfair even. That's why he did it."

Kix's hands bounced up and down as he said, "Hardcase, we don't know what the real reason could've been."

"Even so, I could've been a catalyst. We all could've been one," Hardcase mumbled, looking away. "We all are."

Fives closed his eyes shut and clenched his hands into fists. Rex clenched his jaw. Kix's eyes dropped sadly. Hardcase was right. Jesse patted his brother's shoulder and offered a reassuring smile, the best one he could give. 

"I want to apologize," Hardcase said, looking up to meet Kix's sad gaze. “I want to talk to him. When will the kid wake up?" 

Kix looked down at his wrist and checked the time on his comm. "It depends. His body needs a lot of time to heal from the wounds." Hardcase and the other nodded. 

"But there's something else,” Kix broke the silence, getting their attention. 

Rex raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"While I dressed Tup in some medical garments, I saw something. Fading wounds. Scars. I don't know what from, but some looked fresh too. I'm going to talk to him once he wakes up and maybe he can explain to me what they are."

Everyone remained silent. Rex was the only one to step forward, taking it upon himself to say something since he was the captain. "Okay. Do what you gotta do, Kix. For Tup."

Kix gave Rex a curt nod. "I will."

Everyone stayed outside the medbay for the next four hours. They refused to move from their spots. They made sure to stay out of the way of anyone walking down the hall. Fives was leaning against Rex. Rex rested his back against the wall, his arms crossed over his chest. Kix was back inside the medbay to check on Tup's vitals and make sure he was okay. And Jesse fell asleep against Hardcase. 

Around the 5th hour, approaching footsteps sounded down the hall. Rex looked to his left and spotted Comet, who was running down the hallway towards them, a worried expression on his face. Rex perked up at the sight of the teenager and sat up slightly, waking Fives up in the process, who frowned at him. Rex pointed at Comet for him. Then Fives sat up and looked at Comet. 

Comet stopped in front of them and said, "I heard what happened!" In one breath. Rex, Fives, Hardcase, and Jesse stared at him.

Comet fidgeted under their gaze and looked over at the medbay doors. He gulped and looked back at Rex. "Is…is he okay?" he asked.

Rex nodded. "Yes, he is. The surgery was a success."

Comet closed his eyes and trembled. "Okay. Um…w-when will he wake up?"

Fives was surprised that Comet was here given the circumstances and what happened between him and Tup. 

"A couple more hours," Jesse responded behind Comet. 

Comet glanced over his shoulder at him and then looked at Rex and Fives again. "Can I wait with y'all?" He asked them, hoping that they'll say yes. Screw him being mad at Tup. Tup tried to kill himself, and Comet believed that it may have been because of their breakup. 

Fives nodded. Comet sat down against the wall and waited nervously, feeling more and more worried as time ticked on.

…

Tup felt fuzzy. That was the best way he could describe it. He felt numb as well and if he moved he felt like it wouldn’t end well. He heard voices to the left of him but he couldn’t make out any words. 

He just laid on what he guessed was a bed, slowly coming aware of his surroundings. He didn’t pull his eyes open yet but he could tell he was in a room with bright lights. His fingers twitched underneath a blanket or sheets that were spread over top of him. It didn’t feel like his bunk so he tried to think of where the hell he was. It then clicked that he was in the medbay. The details were fuzzy for the teenager but he had a feeling this situation wasn’t good.

The voices he heard from earlier filtered back into focus, kind of. He strained to hear.

“Kix said that there wouldn't be brain damage-”

“We don’t know that Hardcase," Someone hissed lightly. “For all we know he could be brain dead by tomorrow. We know nothing.” 

That was Echo and the first person that spoke was Hardcase, Tup realized. 

Another conversation started but then a person who was apparently sitting very close to Tup started to speak to someone else. “ _ I really hope that Tup being brain dead doesn’t come to pass.” _ It was definitely one of his older brothers, but something was slightly off with his words. Even though Tup was almost fully awake, he was definitely drowsy and couldn't tell what was different. But he was slowly remembering what had happened.

“ _ We don’t know, Rex, not until he can wake up and tell us himself. _ ”

Tup gathered enough energy to respond with a small amount of cheekiness even though his voice was weak. “ _ I will gladly inform you that I’m awake and not brain dead, thank you very much.” _

All the members of Torrent and Comet, who were leaning against the wall, all snapped to look at Tup, bewildered. 

Tup leveled them with a confused look. “ _ What?" _

Rex and Fives were staring at him, a range of emotions flashing in their eyes. 

Rex leaned a little closer and asked softly, “Since when do you know Mando’a, kiddo?”

Tup frowned at him before the realization hit him like a brick.  _ Dammit! _ He became slightly afraid as he slipped back into Basic. “I-I’m sorry I didn’t tell you-”

Fives shook his head. “No, no, you don’t have to apologize. But we can talk about this later. Kix wants to talk to you first.”

Tup was confused. Why would Kix want to talk to him first? It took a few seconds but Tup eventually remembered why. He froze. Cold dread spread through his bloodstream, settling deep in his bones. He remembered everything from the night before.  _ Oh shit- _

“Tup, listen to me, please?” Rex’s soft voice snapped him out of it, almost as if he could feel Tup’s growing anxiety. Tup could barely bring himself to look at Rex. Tears started to fill his gold-honey eyes. “I know everything might be confusing or upsetting right now, but I want you to know that we all love you. Now Kix is going to talk to you about somethings and then we’ll be back if you want us to be. Okay?”

It took him a moment but the teenager gave the captain a nod. Jesse quickly went and got his husband and Kix walked over to the teenager. Comet had slipped out earlier, feeling like he was imposing on a personal moment. Soon Torrent left Tup alone in Kix’s capable hands. 

Kix took a seat in a chair after grabbing his brother’s file and sat close to Tup’s bed but still gave him some personal space. The medic smiled gently at the teenager even if said kid didn’t return it. “How are you feeling, Tup?”

Tup shrugged, but he knew that wouldn’t get Kix off of his back. “Still drowsy. My head hurts too.” Tup didn’t elaborate because he didn’t have to.

Kix nodded and jotted it down on Tup’s file. Kix took a breath, knowing this conversation could possibly be difficult. “Alright, Tup. Here’s how this is going to work. I’m going to ask you some things but that does not mean you have to answer them. I want to help you, but you do not have to make yourself uncomfortable by telling me. Okay?” 

Tup debated before reluctantly nodding in agreement. 

Kix did want to start off easily or as easy it was going to get. “Before we started surgery, I noticed some old scars and some newer ones on your forearms. Do you want to tell me what they are from?”

Tup started to fidget, keeping his arms under the blanket. He didn’t answer.

“Are they from self-harm?” Kix asked gently, giving Tup some assistance. 

Tup nodded once, looking away slightly. He didn’t like this conversation but he felt better knowing that Kix said he didn’t have to answer if he was super uncomfortable.

“How long has that been going on? And are you self-harming daily?” Kix continued.

Tup thought for a moment before replying with, “I don’t know, about two or three weeks? And not everyday….just when I needed to feel….something.”

Kix looked at Tup for a second before speaking again, "Have you ever cut yourself before three weeks ago?” 

Tup paused before nodding and cleared his throat. “Close to two months ago. That’s when my depression was bad and I-I just didn’t know how to talk about it. B-But I stopped. Then I s-started again.”

"I want to know if I missed something I should've caught from your perspective. Were there any warnings given that I didn't notice?" Kix asked. 

Tup shook his head. "No."

Kix nodded and cocked his head slightly. "Was there a reason why you didn't give me a warning?"

"Because...I knew that you would try and stop me." Tup whispered, looking away. 

Kix nodded again, writing it down. "Can you tell me what caused you to want to commit suicide?" He asked calmly. 

Tup tensed up.  _ I can't tell him.  _ "No."

"Alright, that's completely fine," Kix said with a smile. "Can you tell me why you tried to commit suicide?"

Tup nibbled on his lower lip. "So many things went wrong at the same time. I felt that no one would care if I was gone. I-I j-just wanted all the pain to stop…”

Kix wrote that down and nodded. He made eye contact with Tup. "I understand that you were in a lot of pain, Tup, and I am very sorry for that," Kix apologized.

Tup smiled shyly. "It's okay."

Kix lowered his datapad and crossed his leg over the other. "Now I'd like to try and do a full-body examination to see if there are any other cuts on your skin that we missed and need to disinfect to keep an infection from popping up. May I?" He asked 

Tup nodded, not really thinking about what Kix would find. "Y-Yes. That's fine." Kix stood up with a nod, but Tup tensed up and blurted out, "B-But only if it's you!"

Kix looked at him in shock. Tup gulped and clasped his hands together to hide the shaking. "P-Please?" He asked. 

"Of course, Tup. I'll even put a curtain up so you have a semblance of privacy. Will that make you feel better?" Kix asked, already walking around the bed to grab said sheet. 

Tup nodded with a small smile. "Yes please."

"Alright," Kix responded, pulling the curtain around the medical bed so only he would see Tup fully naked. 

Tup got up off the bed and started to pull off his medical gown once the curtain was fully closed. He kept his eyes down, not wanting to see Kix. He focused on just removing the article of clothing on him. Kix was writing a few things on his datapad, trying to be discrete. 

Once Tup finished, Kix placed his datapad on the edge of the bed and came over to stand in front of Tup and gestured for him to raise his arms up on either side of his body. 

Kix's eyes scanned Tup's limbs, searching for or any kind of wounds, cuts, or bruises. Tup kept his eyes forward. He didn't look down. He didn't look at Kix as he looked at his body. He stared at a single point on the wall that seemed a lot more interesting than what was happening to him. 

Kix hummed to himself when he reached Tup's chest. There seemed to be some bruises like someone pressed themselves up against him. It didn't seem all that bad considering that Tup may have just been laying down for a long time and it looked like a press imprint in his skin, but Kix kept it in mind. 

He moved on to his abdomen and hips. He stopped looking when he found something most peculiar. There were bruises on Tup's skin, just on his hips. It was darker than the rest of his body, easy to spot. It also looked like…handprints? 

Kix's eyes quickly flicked up to Tup's before he looked back down and carried on. When he got to Tup's though, he found small indents in his skin that were bruised up colorfully. It looked like someone dug their finger pads into his skin, hurting him. Those looked too suspicious. More than the pressed indents in his chest or the finger-shaped indents in his hips. But in his thighs…that was very concerning. 

"Tup, I'd like to ask a couple of questions," Kix told him, slowly looking up at him. Tup looked at Kix. "They might be sensitive ones, so you don't have to answer if you don't want to. Can you explain where these wounds and marks came from?" Kix asked him kindly, not wanting to scare Tup on accident. 

Tup remained silent. That wasn't exactly a good or bad thing. Kix took that in stride and continued. Kix was no fool. These marks indicated something dark, something really bad that happened to his little brother, and he was going to get to the bottom of this. One step at a time though. 

Kix lowered his voice and asked, "Tup, you can say yes or no, but are these marks a result of attempted rape or inappropriate touching?" 

Tup hesitated for a good two minutes. He didn't know if he should tell the truth or not. He wanted to, he really wanted to, but at the same, he was afraid of how Kix would react.  _ But I shouldn't be afraid. Kix is my brother! He won't hate me for…for this! That's crazy talk. I…I.think…but…won't he be disappointed?  _ Tup closed his eyes.  _ Maybe I should.  _

"Tup?" Kix prompted, trying to get his attention. Tup slowly opened his eyes and looked at him. Kix smiled reassuringly but it fell quickly. "Are these marks a result of attempted rape or inappropriate touching?" He repeated his question. 

"Yes," Tup whispered.  _ If I said no, he would probably ask me what they were a result of then. How would I explain that? There's no way I can so… _

Kix nodded. In his mind, he sympathized with Tup. He felt bad for him.  _ My little brother had to go through that all by himself. Stars, I had hoped this wasn't true.  _ Kix moved on with the next question, the one he dreaded. 

"Were you raped?" He asked in a nicer tone. 

Tup got choked up. He bit his lower lip and tilted his head to the side, sniffling. "Yes." He mumbled, tears stinging his eyes. He was on the verge of breaking down. 

"It's okay, it's okay. I'm not mad at you," Kix reassured him, cooing gently. 

Tup's shoulders shook as he nodded, raising a curled fist up in front of his lips. Tears escaped his eyes and streamed down his face, breaking Kix's heart. 

Kix moved to continue examining the wounds on Tup's body. Anger burned inside of his chest, growing bigger and bigger as seconds ticked by. 

He wanted to know who hurt Tup; his little brother. He wanted to tear them apart piece by piece, make them suffer somehow, but he'd leave that part to Fives and Rex. Kix knew that they would have to be held back from killing the son of a bitch, whoever they were. And if they were a part of the 501st, Kix will find them. Right now he had to focus on Tup. He finished his examination and stood up, looking Tup in the eyes. 

"You can go ahead and get dressed. I'm done," He told Tup, reaching over to grab his datapad to take notes. Tup turned around and immediately grabbed his clothing off the bed. 

"Tup, if you don't mind me asking, when did it happen?" Kix asked as he looked up from the screen.

Tup's fingers dug into the material of his medical gown. "Umm. About a week ago," He answered. 

Kix nodded. "Do you want to tell me who did it?"

Tup shook his head fervently. "N-No!"

Kix nodded quickly. "It's okay, you don't have to."

Tup sighed and rubbed a hand down his face. "I know, I know. S-Sorry. I…I don't want to." Fear squeezed around his heart like a closed fist. 

Kix offered a small smile. "And that's totally fine! Don't worry about it. Thank you for allowing me to do this, Tup. It was very brave of you. And thank you for answering my questions to the best of your ability."

"You're welcome," Tup said. 

Kix looked at Tup and he couldn't hold it back anymore. All he saw was that scared sixteen-year-old who just lost his batch mates in his first battle. It felt like such a long time ago. "Can I...Can I hug you, please?" Kix asked, raising his arms out. 

Tup nodded. After he did, Kix reached up and tugged him into a warm hug, not being too tight as he didn't want to trigger something. Tup almost sagged into the hug. It felt good. 

"I'm so, so sorry for what happened to you, Tup. I'm sorry I was able to protect you. But I am here now. We are here now. And…and we won't leave. You can talk to me or Jesse anytime. Or maybe Fives and Rex if you are comfortable. But we want you to know we love you dearly and we are here to support you," Kix said, sniffling quietly against Tup's shoulder.

Tup's eyes widened some. He didn't see this coming. His golden eyes hazed over and he dipped his head, hiding his face in Kix's neck. "Thank you," Tup whispered, trembling softly. 

They broke the hug a couple of seconds later and Kix smiled at Tup. "Did you want to tell the others?" Kix asked him. Tup pursed his lips in thought but he didn't know what he wanted. Kix smiled. "It's okay if you can't decide now. Take your time, kiddo."

Tup nodded curtly. He fiddled with his fingers. "Um, the others can come back if they want," He mumbled. 

Kix chuckled, patting his shoulder. "You need to rest first." 

Tup pouted. 

"Ha! At least an hour. Deal?" Kix smirked.

Tup rolled his eyes and smiled slightly, nodding. _ "Okayyy~" _ He got back on the bed as gently as possible. 

Kix noticed that. He opened the curtain around the medical bed and slipped out, letting Tup catch some Zs. 

* * *

The next day as Kix went to check on Tup’s vitals he noticed the teenager was oddly nervous. Kix was the only one from Torrent with Tup at the moment because the others had left earlier. They might come back later but possibly not all of them. 

Tup crossed his legs as he sat up on the bed, messing with his hands in his lap. His hair was loose, falling slightly in front of his face. Kix didn’t ask as he jotted down notes about Tup’s vitals, but after he put the datapad down on the bed he turned his attention to Tup.

“You seem nervous about something. You want to talk about it?” His voice was light and didn’t carry throughout the medbay.

Tup shrugged. “I was just debating on whether to tell Rex and Fives about….you know.”

Kix nodded in understanding. He took a seat on the edge of the bed and put a gentle hand on his shoulder. “Well, let’s put it this way. If you were to tell them, why would you? What would be the reason?”

Tup continued to stare at his hands and muttered, “Because I still want them to be my guardians. Part of me wants things to go back the way they were but the other half can’t let the pain go.”

Kix sighed and thought of a way to help Tup with his predicament. “And you feel like telling them would sort of rebuild the bridge between the three of you?” 

Tup nodded. 

“Is it because by telling them you are putting trust in them and they will then put trust in you again?”

The teenager nodded. Kix nodded again. “Do you want my opinion on this?”

Tup looked at him with pleading puppy eyes and nodded. Kix settled a hand on Tup’s shoulder blades. “As a medic and as your older brother, I feel like you should tell Fives and Rex. It would help you because you wouldn’t be bottling it up and you have a small support group of sorts. But do not tell them just for their benefit. Do it because you want it. That is the only reason you should tell them.”

Tup sighed and seemed to relax. He leaned his head on Kix’s shoulder, feeling Kix’s arms slide across his upper back to hug him. 

The medic dropped his chin to Tup’s head. “Love you, kiddo.”

He could feel Tup smile slightly against his neck. “Love you too.”

“I’ll call Fives and Rex down now if you want me to?”

Tup agreed that he should do it now and get it over with so he could focus on healing. As Kix went into the back room, Tup fidgeted the whole time he waited for Rex and Fives to come down to the medbay but they said they might take a while.  _ W-Will they be mad when I tell them? What if they think I’m damaged goods? What if they’re disappointed that I didn’t fight back hard enough?  _

The medics in the medbay heard one of their brothers’ heart monitors spike. It gave off a beep every five seconds, telling one of the medics to get their ass over to whoever’s heart rate was rising. 

One of Fisto’s medics, Cross, turned first with a few others following after. He saw it was Tup's machines that were alerting the medics. The kid was staring intently at the sheets and didn’t seem to notice his heart rate had jumped. Cross quickly made his way to the back room where Kix was doing paperwork. 

Don’t get him wrong, he loved Tup, but he knew that the teenager was unstable at the moment and Kix would be the best bet to check on him. All the medics whose battalions' were temporally grounded were immediately put on suicide watch patrol. There were no questions asked when Kix asked them to watch the teenager. It was like a code between all the vode. If one of them attempted suicide, they would all watch over him if needed. No questions asked. No judgment. No one else outside of the clones needed to know unless necessary. Especially not the GAR.

Cross stepped into the room, then he leaned against the doorway. “Hey, the kid’s heart rate is spiking. I thought you’d be the best person to calm him down.”

Kix sighed and nodded. He rubbed his eyes with one hand as he followed Cross out of the room. Tup’s eyes were still glued to the sheets and his fidgeting had started up again. Kix realized that Tup was in no immediate danger except his own mind. The Torrent medic calmly walked over to him and sat at the end of the bed, giving him some space. 

“Tup?”

Tup’s head snapped up and locked eyes with Kix. His hands slowed their movement. He ducked his head and muttered, “Sorry." His heart rate slowed as if he was trying to force the anxiety into the back of his mind.

Kix sighed in sympathy before moving to sit directly next to Tup. He knew why the kid was panicking. The machines soon stopped their annoying beeping sound and Tup’s vitals were stable again. “Kiddo, if you’re this scared I don’t think it’s a good idea to tell them. It might trigger you since you’re already nervous as hell.”

Tup leaned into his side. “I-I want to tell them. I just….don't want them to be mad at me.”

Kix turned Tup’s shoulders to face him. “Tup, it was out of your control. It was not your fault. And if they get mad at you for something you couldn’t control then I will punch them. I’m not kidding.”

Tup knew he was partially joking and giggled lightly. He let Kix hug him for a little longer before he pulled away, still uncomfortable with people touching him for long periods of time. The medbay doors slid open and Tup knew that it was time to talk to Fives and Rex. Kix squeezed him one more time before retreating to another brother in the medbay. 

Rex and Fives casually walked over to the bed, seeing Tup avoid eye contact. They sat on the left side of the bed, making sure they were close enough so they could talk quietly if needed. 

“What did you want to talk about, kiddo?” Fives' voice was soft and Tup subconsciously felt a little better about telling them.

He shifted so he was facing them but kept his eyes downcast. "One week ago I got up in the middle of the night. I was too restless and I just wanted to get up and walk around without so many people in halls looking at me.”

Rex frowned. He vaguely remembered hearing Tup get up and watch him walk out of the room; he hadn’t thought anything of it. The ARC and captain could see how nervous the teenager was and it was putting them slightly on edge. 

Tup opened his mouth to speak but he closed it and sighed fighting tears. Rex put his hand on the bed and offered it to Tup. He took it without a second thought. 

Fives got Tup's attention and stared into Tup’s shattered golden eyes. “Whatever it is you want to tell us, we won’t be mad, we won’t judge you or anything like that. We’ll always love you no matter what.”

Tup swallowed hard and decided to just get it over with. “I-I got pushed into a storage room.” The tears started to fall silently and the two older men felt their hearts break. Rex traced the back of Tup’s hand, doing what he could to comfort him. “I-I told him to stop but he didn’t,” Tup said. 

Fives and Rex were a little confused and had to mentally connect the dots, but they knew that Tup just needed to get it off his chest. The teenager trailed off and let out a small whimper. 

“What happened? Did he do something?” Rex asked.

Tup whispered, “He raped me.”

Fives cursed in Mando’a even though Tup could understand it. Rex tensed up. He looked pissed. 

Tup curled in on himself and peeked at the two men. “A-Are you mad?” 

Rex and Fives deflated and immediately turned their attention back to their kid. 

Fives grabbed Tup’s other hand. “No, no, no we are not mad at you, Tup. We could never be mad at you for something like this. Ever. We are furious at the situation and at the person who did this to you. But we are not mad at you.”

Tup closed his eyes, tears still falling fast. He placed his head on Rex’s shoulder, feeling his brother’s arms slowly wrap around him. He felt Fives sit on his free side, lacing their fingers together.

Eventually, Tup calmed down. His tears ran dry. His cheeks and face got all sticky with drying tears tracks and he was tired. Rex and Fives continued to hold him though. They never let go. Tup sniffled and sagged into their hold. Their arms around them, holding him, it felt right, like it always had. He felt safe. 

Tup smiled in contentment. His breaths calmed down, easing to the normal speed. He sagged against his guardians and sighed.

Rex's and Fives' hearts throbbed in time with Tup's heartbeat. They looked at one another and smiled at one another. 

"Tup, wanna hear a funny story?" Fives asked, smirking when Tup blinked and looked up at him. 

"Uhhh, y-yeah. What's up?" Tup asked, smiling slightly. 

Fives chuckled and reminisced. "Well, Hardcase thought it would be funny to prank Jesse yesterday, and he stood just outside the entrance to the 'fresher with a bucket of water in his hand and waited for Jesse to come out of the 'fresher."

Tup gasped and groaned, "Noooo he  _ didn't." _

"Yes, he _ didddd," _ Rex said, hiding his laughter in his hand. 

"What happened?" Tup asked, now curious, his full attention on Fives. 

Fives tapped his chin and snickered, "Well, why should I tell you when I could just show you?" He reached down and tapped a couple of buttons on his comm. 

Tup's eyes widened when he realized what Fives was implying. "What? You recorded it?!"

"Shhh. Shhh. Yesss, I recorded it," Fives shushed him, smiling softly. He found the recording and pressed the play button. 

The video showed Hardcase standing outside the entrance to the 'fresher, waiting in excitement. Tup could hear chuckling in the background, probably from Rex and Fives. The 'fresher door opened and Kix and Jesse both walked out, white towels wrapped around their waists. Hardcase jerked, not even waiting to see who he was going to pour the water on, and he poured the water on Kix! 

Tup gasped louder and busted out laughing, slapping his knees and he looked at the recording still. 

Kix was shaking, glaring knives at Hardcase. Jesse had screamed, jumping out of the way as the water splashed in all directions. The camera shook with the wrath of Fives' own laughter too. 

Tup had to wipe the tears out of his eyes to be able to see the rest of the video. 

Kix wiped the water out of his eyes and growled, "You're dead," Before running at Hardcase. The video erupted into loud chaos. Hardcase screamed and turned around, trying to escape the medic's wrath. The video blurred as Hardcase stupidly ran towards Fives. Fives yelled for him to stop but all Tup could see behind Hardcase was Kix's towel coming off and him using it as a whip to snap at Hardcase's ass. Hardcase fell forward and the video stopped there with Fives' hand raised up in front of himself. 

Tup was wheezing after it finished. He couldn't breathe. It was too funny. Rex was laughing just as hard. And Fives was in tears. 

"Oh my gosh!! Why did Kix take off his towel like that?" Tup asked loudly. 

Fives raised one finger to Tup’s lips and shushed him playfully. Tup batted his hands away and giggled. Rex just shook his head at the two. 

"And Hardcase fell! And the way you blurred the camera and raised your hand in the air! Priceless!!" Tup squealed, taking deep breaths. 

Fives exhaled. "Ahhhhh."

"Okay, you two. Calm down," Rex told them, leaning back. 

_ "Sorryyyy _ . It was just so funny!" Tup said, smiling hard. 

Rex and Fives smiled brightly at the smile on Tup's face. They hadn't seen him smile in such a long time. And he was right, it was quite hilarious. 

* * *

Seventy-two hours passed and one of the young medics told Tup that Kix was coming over to talk to him. Kix told Tup that he could leave because the seventy-two hours of suicide watch was over but to take it easy. Kix suggested going back to the 501st barracks and resting for a bit before he got into anything extreme.

Tup agreed and thanked Kix for everything he did for him those past two days. Afterward, Tup left the medbay and headed on down to where the 501st barracks would be. It was a nice walk. No one to bother him. No one to make eye contact with and glare at him. Nobody was mean to him lately. Everyone was more than nice, and Tup appreciated it. 

He reached the barracks in record time and safely. He entered and walked into the small rec room where everyone seemed to be getting ready for something. Tup had no idea what so he headed into the back where the bunk to one was located. Rows upon rows of bunk beds were filled with troopers from Torrent. Tup looked through each one until he spotted Fives near the back where Hardcase’s bunk was. 

Tup walked over and waved shyly when the two noticed his approach.

"Hey, kiddo,” Fives greeted him, slowly bringing him into a hug to not startle him. 

Tup smiled and hugged Fives back. "Hey yourself." He broke the hug and looked around the room, gesturing as he asked, "Where's everyone going? Out?" Fives nodded, eyes closed. 

Hardcase slapped his white pillow quite hard and hopped down with a thud. "Yep! We are going to the training room!"

"Heh. Yeah," Fives said. 

"Ohhh. Cool. I wish I could go with you,” Tup mumbled, pouting slightly. 

Hardcase frowned. "Why can't you go?"

"Because…doctor's orders," Tup said, crossing his arms over his chest. He looked over to the side and sighed. "I gotta rest for a little while longer, just not in the medbay this time. 72 hours are up anyway."

"Ohhhh!" Hardcase understood, snapping his fingers. 

Fives fidgeted in place. "Are you sure you don't want company? I can stay, honestly."

Tup smiled. "I appreciate the thought, really, Fives, but I'd like to be alone."

Fives took a steady breath. "O-Okay. I just don't like the thought of you being alone, but if that's what you want, stay safe. Okay?" Fives offered a small smile. 

Tup smiled back. "Of course. I'll comm you if anything happens."

"Cool," Fives said, flinching when Hardcase slammed his hand down on his shoulder pad. 

"Yep! Oh! Everyone's leaving. I bet Rex is already down there. Come on, Fives!" Hardcase yelled, jogging away. 

Fives sighed heavily and groaned, "Comingggg! See ya kid."

Tup turned around and watched them leave. He tried not to feel sad about it.  _ I'll see them soon. Nothing to worry about.  _ Tup headed over to Fives' and Rex's bunk bed and hopped in, not wanting to sleep on his own. He snuggled into the white pillow that belonged to Fives and slowly fell asleep. 

The others returned two hours later. Tup got a lot of rest. He peeked through one open eye as his brothers filtered into the bunk room from the rec room and grabbed some white towels before heading back out. Others didn't come back in at all. They probably went to go socialize with some troops from the 104th or something. 

Tup heard the doors close shut and it was silent. It didn't stay silent for long though. The doors opened again and he heard one pair of feet coming towards his bunk. The teenager opened his eyes and angled his head slightly to see who it was. He snapped into a sitting position and got out of the bed, nose flaring in panic when he saw who it was. 

In front of him, legs spread apart, even with his shoulders, fists clenched, and emotionless eyes locked on him, was Chains. 

Tup felt scared. He…he didn't know what the hell to do. Then he swallowed back his fear and he devised a plan in the back of his mind.  _ Where are my escape routes? Any weapons nearby? Can the others hear me if I scream? The walls are pretty thin, right? Especially the walls connecting the rooms. Can I fight back if he tries to grab me? Most likely, but the real question is for how long? I don't know.  _

Tup's golden eyes flicked left and right, scanning his surroundings. The door was just behind Chains a couple of rows down, at least four. He'd have to get by this hunk of a threat and reach the door in time. He was confident he could get by though. He knew he could. 

“Get away from me,” Tup said in reflex, trying not to sound terrified.

Chains smirked. “It’s not like you can take me down. One hit to your head and you’re done.”

“I’ll scream,” Tup challenged, knowing shouting would alert his older brothers in an instant.

“I thought I fucking told you to not tell anyone,” Chains hissed at him, ignoring the threat Tup just made. 

Tup took two steps back, already putting more distance between the two of them. “I-I had to, Chains. What did you expect me to do? Kix was already suspicious-” Tup was cut off.

“I don’t give a fuck, you little brat! Now everyone knows you were assaulted by someone! You're lucky they don’t know I was the one that fucked you.”

Tup was confused.  _ Wait a minute, how did Chains know I told Kix in the first place? _ “What do you mean ‘everyone knows? Do the others know about....”

Chains glared at him. “What the fuck did I just say?! Yes! And I swear to gods if you say it was me I’ll make sure you wish you had died.”

Tup flinched violently. No one should ever say that to someone who was recovering from attempted suicide. He was already feeling broken down as is.

Chains was getting closer and Tup was running out of time. Either he could give in to his fear and let Chains ruin his life once again or he could take control and bolt to the door. But he was frozen, trying to think. He wanted to fight back this time. He was tired of being afraid of the man in front of him. He  _ knew _ Torrent was on the other side of that door; safety was on the other side of that door. Danger, however, was standing right in front of him and he was staring it in the eye.  _ Well, it’s now or never. _

In the blink of an eye, Tup was sprinting towards the door. Chains, however, caught him around the waist. Tup was lifted off his feet but he jabbed his elbow into Chains’ chest, hard. Chains dropped him and went down on one knee. Tup again bolted for the door, quickly slamming a hand on the keypad. Chains raced after him, forgetting that literally at least half of their battalion was in the rec room. The older man reached for the teenager but Tup’s smacked his arm away. 

“What the hell is going on?!” 

They both paused at the sound of their captain snapping at them. Tup immediately ran for cover near Torrent, feeling everyone’s eyes on him. Rex and Fives stepped forward, their parental senses on hyperdrive.

“Chains, you have two seconds to explain why I just saw you trying to make a grab for my kid,” Rex growled. He had never been fond of Chains, even if they were brothers. He was disrespectful, always looked for a way to irritate the captain, and disobeyed orders like it was his religion. 

Chains clenched his jaw as Tup hid behind Kix. The medic shielded the young trooper from the man, glaring back at him.

Tup buried his face in Kix’s shoulder blades and said clearly for everyone to hear, “C-Chains. I-It was Chains.”

Puzzle pieces slid into place. Chains’ eyes burned through Kix straight to Tup. “You little slut!”

All of the clones in the battalion quickly moved towards Torrent, prepared to protect their baby brother.

“Kix, get the kid out of here!” Talon urgently begged the medic, who was already leading Tup out of the barracks with Jesse and Hardcase. Kix was taking most of the teenager’s weight, who was starting to silently cry. Echo was moving towards where Fives and Rex had walked to Chains. 

Without warning, Rex swung his fist right into Chains’ jaw. “You fucking bastard!”

One of Rex’s heavy gunners crossed to the front of the barracks. His hand hovered as he tried to decide on what to do. He shrugged and locked the door, then jammed it. Echo or Hardcase could fix it later. 

Fives grabbed Chains’ right arm and with all his might he flipped Chains’ over his shoulder so he could pin him down on the cold floor, feeling pure satisfaction when Chains grimaced in pain, trying to throw the ARC off of him. 

Rex crossed his arms and towered over the other trooper. “What you did was a criminal offense. And I’ve seen enough proof to know you’re guilty and lucky me I won’t have to deal with more paperwork because Tup won't have to file a complaint.”

Fives looked up at his boyfriend with fire in his eyes. “Do we have cuffs or anything to bind his wrists?”

Cable stood up straight where he was partially leaning against a wall. “I’ll see if I can find something.”

Rex nodded to him and turned his attention back to Fives. “Sorry I got the first punch in and you didn’t get a chance.”

Fives smirked. “It’s alright. I got to judo flip him, so it’s even.” 

Chains rolled his eyes but stayed silent, fuming inside. His ribs hurt where the fucking kid nailed him hard and he had to guess he had a few cracked ribs.

Rex quickly contacted the Coruscant guard and requested them to meet Torrent outside of the facility, explaining the situation as loosely as possible without giving too much information. He just hoped either Fox, Thorn, or Thire would be the ones to come; he knew Stone wasn’t on Coruscant much. The trooper said a squad would be sent out soon, ready to take Chains into custody.

“The Guard is about ten minutes out. We’ll meet them outside of the building so it won’t cause any hassle,” Rex explained, mostly for Fives, but the others deserved to know too.

Cable did end up finding a spare pair of cuffs in a compartment and tossed them to Rex. Fives kept Chains’ hands behind his back as Rex put the handcuffs on the clone. 

Rex, not-so-gently, yanked Chains up, grabbing one of his arms as Fives reached for the other. Rex let Echo open the door after fiddling with it for a minute, leading the way to the main entrance.

As they were getting close to the door five minutes later, Rex looked Chains in the eye. “I didn’t want it to come to this, Chains. This is the last thing I want for anyone but what you did is disgusting and you deserved to be punished. At least where you’re going you won’t be able to hurt anyone anymore; you won’t be able to hurt Tup.”

Chains scoffed and rolled his eyes. “You don’t give a shit about us, Rex. You never have.”

Rex stopped in the middle of the hallway, huffing. Fives shook his head, knowing Chains’ words would hurt Rex.

“Chains, if I didn’t give a shit, your ass would be on the way to Kamino ready to be decommissioned. Don’t tell me I don’t care,” Rex spat back. He pushed Chains forward, staying silent the rest of the way. 

As they reached outside, the Coruscant Guard was already there. Echo turned back, knowing his older brothers had it handled. A few troopers stepped forward and took Chains out of Fives’ and Rex’s grasp. Fox waved his troopers on, giving them the okay to start heading back.

Fox stepped forward and crossed his arms over his chest in a non-threatening way. “I have to ask, Rex. On what grounds do you want him arrested for?”

“Sexual assault against a fellow trooper,” Rex stated simply and professionally.

Fox looked taken back but pressed on, “Definition of sexual assault in this case?”

“Rape.”

Fox quietly cursed under his breath. “Alright, but I need the name of the trooper who was assaulted.”

Rex sighed and stared at Fox, hoping that his puppy eyes from training would work on his hard-ass older brother. “Fox, please.”

Fox crossed his arms tighter, body posture becoming challenging, something he picked up from Jango. “ _ Rex _ , you know how this works. I need a name for the trooper so I can attach his file to the report. It’s the way it works.”

Rex and Fives looked at each other, words soundlessly passing between them. Without taking his eyes off of Fives, the captain answered quietly, “...Tup.”

Fox sucked in a breath, not expecting that name to come out. “What?”

“I said it was Tup.”

Fox seemed to debate something for a moment or two. He stared at the ground before sighing in slight frustration. Rules were rules; both names needed to be on the report. But...if he had a teenager in the Guard….would he really follow those rules? 

“I’ll pull some strings. His name won’t be connected to this situation,” Fox settled for, startling Fives.

Rex thanked all the gods that Fox understood why he didn't want Tup’s name to be mentioned. If someone that wasn’t a clone noticed how young he was, there could be an investigation; Tup could possibly be taken away from the 501st or something much worse.

“Thank you, Fox. Really,” Rex thanked his brother. They weren’t exactly close on Kamino but Rex was glad Fox still had a sense of brotherhood with him. 

Fox nodded and walked to catch up with his troops. Rex and Fives sighed and didn’t look behind them as they re-entered the barracks. Now, they needed to find their kid, hug him tight, and never let him go.

…

Tup is inside the medbay, sitting by himself on a medical bed as he just finished getting a check-up from one of the medics. He was staring at the floor, kind of floating aimlessly in his own thoughts. A pair of fast-approaching footsteps came from in front of him. Tup jerked to look up on instinct, on edge ever since what happened the other day with Chains, and he came face to face with Comet, whose hand was outstretched in front of him as if he was going to tap Tup's shoulder. 

Tup stared at him, half-surprised by his presence, but he wasn't really surprised by much these days, so what was new? 

"Hey," Tup said emotionlessly, wondering why the other teenager was there. 

Comet lowered his hand and quickly averted eye contact for half a second. "Hey. Um." His eyes flickered up to look into Tup's again. "Can I talk to you? It's important."

"Why?" Tup asked a bit harsher this time. A little bite to it. 

Comet's eyes drooped. "Please, Tup? Afterward, I won't bother you anymore. I promise. Just…in private, maybe."

Tup knew that the medbay wasn't the best private place to talk about anything that might get spread around as drama or gossip. The medics were infamous for passing gossip around whenever they heard it. They were the main sources for it.

"Fine. But not here," Tup's said. 

A small smile of relief appeared on Comet's face. "Okay. Thank you."

Tup didn't reply. He and Comet exited the medbay and into the hallway.  _ I don't want to stay with him too long,  _ Tup thought immediately. He crossed his arms over his chest and quietly looked at Comet. 

"So…look, I understand I'm the last person you want to talk to right now, with everything that's happened, and you probably just want to be happy with your new boyfriend-"

Tup flinched, interrupting him, "What do you mean  _ 'new boyfriend?' _ Are you talking about  _ Chains?  _ The one who you saw kiss me?" 

Comet slowly nodded. Tup felt slightly uncomfortable, learning that Comet believed that Chains and he were… _ dating. _ It disgusted him to even think about it. He felt nauseous just thinking about it. He hated the notion of that impossibility! 

"C-Chains was arrested the other day, Comet," Tup said, staring at Comet. 

Comet stared back, stuttering on his words, "I-I… what?" Tup nodded. 

"I didn't hear about that," Comet said, noticing the look on Tup's face. It didn't look good. Tup's face had taken on a pale shade and his eyes looked sad. Almost puppy-like. Comet hated seeing that look on him, only whenever he was sad or hurting. "What…what happened?" He asked the teenager, concerned for him. 

Tup swallowed and tilted his head, looking off to the side. The voices came rumbling back. The sounds. The terrible, horrid sounds. The threats...the pain. All of it came rushing back. Tup opened his mouth to explain it all, "Two weeks before you walked in on us in the training room, Chains had…taken a liking to me."

Comet didn't like the sound of that. Not at all. 

"It was after I got into the argument with Rex and Fives, and Rex punished me in front of everyone. Chains was my partner that day while sparring. He watched it all go down. It…it spurred on some kind of interest, I guess. But not the good kind."

"A week later I decided to go to 79s and meet up with Jesse and Hardcase, to get a taste of freedom and independence for the first time. I got to the club and I couldn't find Jesse or Hardcase so I made the decision to spend the night by myself. The lady who worked the counter asked if it was my first time being there and I said yes, also yes to it being my first time drinking. She got me my first drink, some kind of gin." Tup tensed up. "Then Chains came. He manipulated me. First, he got to know me and I got to know him. He used that and tried to make himself look approachable. Nice, even. I actually thought he was nice. Chains found out it was my first time at 79s so he offered to buy me a couple of drinks, shots. But he asked how old I was. I told him my actual age, eighteen, and he remembered that."

"He got me a really strong drink and got me drunk. He wanted to get me so drunk that I wasn't able to think right. That my sense of judgment was clouded. I, without thinking, started to challenge him to who could drink the most shots. He, of course, stepped up to the challenge with a darker undertone or plan in mind. When I got too drunk, he led me over to the dance floor after I got excited about it. Soon he flirted with me. I had enough sense to move away. He was on me a bit too close. Made me uncomfortable. But he kept coming. Eventually, he told me that he knew I was still upset about what Rex and Fives did to me. He manipulated my feelings and twisted them up, making it seem like he could help me."

Tup clenched his jaw, holding back the tears. He wouldn't cry. "I honestly wanted help, you know. Not in the way I wanted though. I wanted someone to talk to me and comfort me…not what he did." 

Comet wanted so badly to ask what he did. But he kept his mouth shut and allowed Tup to explain his story. 

"He started to touch me a bit, not much. But he was trying to entice me, I think. No. I know he was trying to. And he told me he could help me, so I went with him, wanting help. But…he moved me over to a corner of the dance floor where no one would be able to notice us. I had my back pressed against the wall as he kissed me. In the back of my mind, I knew it was wrong. I didn't want it. So I asked him to stop. He didn't though. He kept telling me he was helping me. I was too drunk to push him off or do a damn thing to get away, so I was stuck there, pressed against the cold wall, and I waited for it to be over. He left me there. Told me he liked it and wanted to do it again. I left 79s feeling empty. I went to the 'fresher and threw up a little after I remembered what actually happened at the club. Kix found me and I told him I drank but I didn't tell him about Chains."

Comet clenched his fists. He was shocked by what he had just learned. It was breaking his heart piece by piece. 

"It didn't end there though. After that, he started to watch me in the mess whenever I was with Jesse and Kix. I ignored him though to the best of my ability. I didn't tell anyone he was watching me because I didn't want to bother them with what was happening." Tup said, scrunching his nose to stop the constant, annoying burn behind his eyes. "Then Chains caught me a few times alone or he would yank me into empty storage closets and he'd…he'd touch me. One time. It was in the Torrent 'fresher." 

Tup stared at the floor and grimaced. "I remember…four times."

Comet shivered.

"Four times that man…that  _ monster _ did that to me. Each time he did, it would get worse. And worse. And the third time he did it he threatened to hurt me if I told anyone."

Comet raised a shaky hand to his mouth in horror. He was stunned beyond belief.

"The last time he did it was when I decided to stay behind in the training room on Coruscant to practice more because everyone left. Chains left the room with everyone else. But he came back. He caught me off guard and alone and I tried to run out of the room. I even screamed, but no one heard me," Tup said, the burning sensation behind his eyes and the squeezing in his chest getting worse. "Then you walked in with that smile on your face. You looked so…excited." Tup trailed off, sniffling. 

Comet's heart broke entirely.  _ Don't cry, Tup. Please don't.  _ It was Comet's weakness to see Tup cry. He never wanted to see Tup cry, ever. Even when he broke up with him it was quite difficult to break ties with a boy he was in love with,  _ still in love with,  _ whose face looked just like that. Heartbroken. 

"My whole reality shattered when I broke away from Chains and chased after you. You didn't want to believe me. I tried to tell you it wasn't how it seemed and…I should've told you." Tup nodded, eyes wet. "I should've fucking told you right there that he was hurting me but he was watching me, Comet. He was watching and I couldn't come out with the truth. I was afraid. I was afraid I would get hurt worse than the last."

Tup sniffled. Comet sniffled too. "Five days after the incident, he dragged me into a closet and raped me. He was angry, not at me, but at Rex. He wanted to get rid of his anger by raping me, making me hurt. My pain...my pain was what he enjoyed."  _ He was a fucking psychopath,  _ went unsaid. Tup took a deep breath to steady himself. He trembled harder, looking Comet in the eyes. "It hurt. It was like nothing I've ever felt before. It tore away everything I had left and it left me with nothing. An empty room and an empty shell."

Tup sucked in another deep breath and felt the dam break. Tears rolled down his cheeks in streams, breaking from their primary lines to create new ones. "I didn't feel alive anymore. I didn't feel like my body was mine anymore. I felt like I was going to crawl right out of my skin and burn. But I forced myself to leave the closet. I went back to my barracks and took a short shower. I wanted to…" Tup raised his hands up to gesture to his body. "Get that disgusting feeling off of me, you know. Everything. But nothing worked. I couldn't get that off of me."

Tup lowered his hands and wiped his tears away. "I think…I think I had a really bad episode after that. Couldn't breathe. Couldn't hear. Couldn't think. I couldn't do anything. I felt useless and hopeless. I threw up too. Kix came in when he heard me and I pushed him away while he tried to comfort me. I crawled back into his and Jesse's bed though."

Tup shook his head. "I was miserable after that. I didn't talk to anyone. I didn't eat. I didn't move. I hated everything. We went out on a mission and my wounds caused me a lot of pain. The troopers I was with told Kix and the others and when Kix came over, I, again, pushed him away. Kix finally got frustrated with me and walked away. Everyone got mad at me. They were pissed off at the fact that was just wasting Kix's time for what they thought was for 'attention,' but I didn't want to bother him. I felt like a burden and that's why I pushed him away."

Tup wrapped his arms around his body, hugging himself. He tried to hide his trembling. "A few days later, I started cutting myself, wanting to feel something. That's how empty I felt. It didn't work. I finally decided to kill myself a little while later. I didn't want to feel like that anymore. Hardcase and Echo came in when I was holding a gun up to my skull, they said a few harsh things, told me to stop being so dramatic and put the gun down, or something like that, and that was the last straw."

Comet took a step forward. He couldn't hide his tears anymore. He wanted to hug Tup. But how could he?  _ I caused this, didn't I? I am the cause for his pain? I could've forgiven him, believed that he truly loved me, and what happened in the training room was not what it seemed. But what did I do? Go fucking dump him. Fuck. What the fucking is wrong with me? _

"You know that Jesse walked in and saw what was going on? He immediately told Echo to go get Kix, Rex, and Fives, and they all came and tried to stop me. At that moment, that sliver of love, it affected me in ways that I hadn't felt in a long time, but I pulled the trigger, still loving them anyway," Tup said, wiping more fresh tears away. "I woke up in the medbay, learning I survived. I don't know how, but it hit my skull and I still managed to survive, and I was spared permanent damage, thankfully. And everyone jumped at the opportunity to support me and show me the love that they hadn't shown those past weeks. That's what brought me back."

Comet didn't know what to say. He had a million things to say but knew not one word could make a difference or truly fix what had been fractured. He went with, "I want to say that I am so so sorry...but I know that's not enough." Comet looked away, eyes drooping. 

Tup raised his chin, nodding. "I know," He said coldly. “I’m the one who had to live with the rejection.” Comet winced, knowing what was about to come.

“Even though I practically got disowned by Fives and Rex, even with all the pain Chains put me through; I still had you," Tup whispered, feeling the back of his throat stinging. “I have always loved you. And I know you love me. But the moment you didn’t believe me, the moment you walked away from me and left me alone in that hallway, that was the  _ only _ time in my entire life that questioned my love for you.”

Hearing that was like a repeated punch to the gut for Comet, hearing that the boy he loved with his whole heart, felt broken because of him. Tup met Comet’s eyes. Honey on amber. They didn’t know where to go from there.

“Do you still love me?” Comet asked gently. Tup opened his mouth but then clenched his jaw. Comet looked like he wanted to reach for the teenager but decided against it. “Don’t lie just to spare my feelings. Do you love me?”

Tup wanted to cry once again. “I...I-I don’t think I do.”

Comet nodded solemnly, having expected that answer. Tup trembled slightly. “I know you still love me, Com’. B-But I just can’t be with you. At least not now.” Tears slipped over his waterline.

Comet shook his head and before he could back out he pulled Tup into a gentle hug, giving time for the smaller boy to back out. Tup slid his arms around Comet’s waist, feeling like this was the last time for a long time he would hug Comet this intimately. Comet pulled away, heart breaking as he saw Tup’s shattered puppy eyes. Both of them didn’t want to let go of each other but everyone had to let go of something in their lives. Even if they were never a couple again, they would always be each other’s first love.

Comet tilted Tup’s chin up. “I do love you. And I love you enough to know I have to let you go for now. Even though it is killing me right now, I know this is what you need right now.”

Tup’s eyes fluttered closed and they pulled away from each other. A small smile appeared on his face. “Just because we aren’t together doesn’t mean I don’t want to cut all ties with you.”

Comet chuckled, smiling brightly. “Oh, you’re stuck with me now. And you can bet your ass that I will still be protective as hell over you. Especially if someone develops a crush on you.”

Tup chuckled as well and rolled his eyes playfully. He observed Comet again and felt even more emotions hitting him. He settled for hugging Comet again, relishing in the familiar static that crackled and popped in his veins. Warmth spread through him. It wasn’t the end for these two. They had developed a bond that no one could break.

“I should get back before the others flip out.” Tup slid out of Comet’s arms. “See you later?”

Comet nodded and winked at him as he turned around. Tup scoffed playfully and smirked. “Dork.” Even as they walked in opposite directions, they were both glad they were on the same page. 

Tup traveled back to the 501st barracks, a small sliding onto his face as he gazed at his family scattered around the rec room. It wasn’t just Torrent that was his family, it was the entirety of the 501st and beyond his battalion. But he would always be the youngest of the 501st.

The teenager hopped down on the couch next to Fives and Rex. They turned and grinned at their kid. Fives playfully lifted Tup and placed him in between the two, ruffling his hair. Tup swatted at his hand playfully but laid his head on Fives’ shoulder.

“You seem happy.” Rex noticed the normal happiness that Tup radiated. 

Tup nodded at him pulling him closer. “Yeah, I am happy. I am with my family.”

Rex chuckled, pressing a kiss to Tup’s head. Fives pulled the two of them closer, pressing Tup against his side. The teenager sighed happily and he let his eyes fall shut. He would have his bad days; he knew that. But there would also be good days. Even though it took them a while to realize their mistakes and help Tup back onto his feet, they weren’t going anywhere ever again.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's it for Tup's arc. Zeke will be up next, seeing that I have waited way too damn long to get to his chapter. 💙
> 
> Beta reader/Editor-AngelWars (Ao3)
> 
> What do you think? Requests?

**Author's Note:**

> All mistakes are mine. This is canon to the best of my ability.


End file.
